I Believe In You
by Mubby
Summary: Six months after defeating Slade, life has mostly returned to normal for Felicity Smoak. That is, until a seemingly routine take-down of a Mafia boss puts her on the path to discovering things that will shake her to her very core. *Olicity Slow Burn*
1. Chapter 1

"Oliver, I think I found him." She rattled off the address she was convinced was the hideout where he could find Vincent Marcetti, a high-ranking member of the Cassavette's crime family that they'd been trying to track down for the last couple weeks. She gave him a rundown of exits off the blueprints she was examining on one of her computer monitors but she couldn't tell him much else.

Gunshots rang out through her comm and she was thankful that Dig and Roy were with Oliver, knowing he could handle himself but that didn't always help her anxiety when he was in the field. The sounds of the fight continued for five more minutes before things became eerily quiet.

She was about to say his name when his voice came over the comm. "We got him, Felicity. Give SCPD a call and have them send someone to pick him up."

She clicked her comm off and grabbed her cell phone, dialing Quentin Lance's number.

"Hey Lieutenant, there is a present in the form of some mafia goons waiting for you at their not-so-secret hideout," she said when he answered. He'd been appointed Lieutenant by Franklin Pike, who was currently the interim Chief, after he'd healed up from injuries sustained during the battle with Slade's Mirakuru army. It had been six months since that and four since Lance had become Lieutenant and she didn't think she'd ever tire of calling him that.

He chuckled and asked for the address which she happily gave him. "You know you don't have to call me personally every time he catches some guy. It's almost midnight, I'm not even at the station. Other cops do work there."

Felicity smiled at his teasing tone. "Well, that would be no fun." The truth was she'd left anonymous tips the two months he'd been out but that had become a pain in the ass and she didn't want it common knowledge that she was connected to the Arrow.

Not that it mattered much if the police knew, seeing as the relationship between the SCPD and the Arrow was the best it had ever been. She considered it to be an upside of working together to save the city.

"I'm happy you called actually. I was going to call tomorrow and see if you could come to the station and help me out with something."

She frowned. "Something Arrow related?"

"Not exactly. I'm more in need your IT expertise."

She chuckled. She should have known, she'd been receiving these calls pretty often lately. After Slade had been taken out, she'd helped the SCPD out part-time for a little while they searched for a replacement for their IT guy who'd died during the fight. It had only been for about three months but she'd enjoyed it.

"I take it the replacement guy isn't working out?"

Lance snorted. "The kid's fine but I don't want him touching my computer."

"I have to be at QC tomorrow but I can swing by the station when I'm done, probably after five, sound good?"

He said that was fine, thanked her and said goodnight. She hung up, a smile on her face. She stood, grabbing her purse off the desk she'd recently purchased in celebration of Oliver regaining control of Queen Consolidated and turned, intending to head home for the night.

"Jesus!" She yelled, startled as she narrowly avoided crashing into Oliver. Her hand flew to her chest, trying to calm her racing heart. "You scared me. Slam the door behind you or stomp your feet or something."

Oliver's half-smile told her he'd enjoyed scaring her. "I'm surprised you're still here," he said as he gestured around the newish lair. "Dig and Roy already headed home."

She noticed her hand settled on his forearm and he held her by the elbow. She subtlety pulled her arm away and stepped around him, needing to not be so close. She felt, rather than saw, Oliver's body tense minimally before he relaxed again, and she knew that she hadn't been as subtle as she wanted.

"I was on the phone with Lieutenant Lance. He wants me to stop by the station and help him out with some computer stuff tomorrow." She pulled her jacket on, absent-mindedly buttoning it up. "I'll see you in the morning, Oliver," she said without looking at him.

She lost her breath when his hand grasped her elbow again, turning her around, his eyes meeting hers. "Felicity," he said her name as a sigh and she knew she did not want to have this conversation. Still, she found she couldn't move, stuck in place, waiting for him to say something, anything. An inner battle made his eyes stormy and they stared at each for far too long, drinking each other in. Finally, he let her go, smiling at her half-heartedly. "Have a good night."

She smiled sadly. "Good night, Oliver."

She didn't start breathing again until she was safely ensconced in her car. She started it and grabbed the wheel but instead of driving away, her head fell, resting on the steering wheel. She took deep, calming breaths and tried to still her trembling hands. They'd been doing this song and dance for the past six months, acting as if everything was normal on the surface but she couldn't lie to herself. Things had shifted the second he'd told her he loved her and even though it may have only been for Slade's benefit, it had felt real.

She wasn't mad at him. Did she wish he'd told her his plan on the way to the mansion? Yes. Did she wish that he hadn't said it, left it at he took the wrong woman? Yes. But she wasn't mad. It was a brilliant plan and it had made her heart swell to know how much Oliver trusted her. She couldn't lie, either, about the fact that curing Slade had made her feel like a bad-ass.

Oliver had once told her that they were partners and that had been the moment she'd known it was true. It could have gone horribly wrong. What if Slade had found the cure or what if she hadn't been able to get the drop on him or what if he'd killed her before she got the chance but none of that had happened. Oliver had believed in her like she believed in him and she couldn't be mad about that.

She'd pushed him a little while they'd been standing on the beach of Lian Yu, hoping he would say one way or another how he'd felt in that moment. She'd waited for him to say he really meant it or sit her down instead and tell her that he loved her but he wasn't in love with her. Instead, he did neither, simply smiled and skirted around the answer and she knew he wasn't going to say anything else.

Six months later and life had mostly returned to normal. With the help of Walter Steele and a few other people, Queen Consolidated had become Oliver's once again. Which meant she was back to being his Executive Assistant, not that she was going to complain...too much anyways. At least the people were better to work with than the ones at the job she'd picked up at K.O.R.D. Enterprises to get her through while the company was in limbo so to speak. She'd hated it there, spending her days counting down the minutes until she was free to help out Team Arrow.

Reluctantly, she lifted her head from the steering wheel. Tomorrow was looking like a busy day and she'd need all the rest she could get.

* * *

Oliver watched her drive away, hiding in the shadows outside the building. He'd almost walked up and knocked on the window, concerned that she'd been sitting there for a long while.

As soon as her tail lights faded into the distance, he hopped on his bike and followed her, keeping a safe distance. As much as he hated to admit it, this wasn't the first time he'd followed her home. For the past six months, this had become an almost nightly routine, following her home and sitting outside her place until the lights shut off. Some nights he couldn't do it but he did his best to do it as often as he was able to.

He'd done it before everything had happened with Slade,too. There'd been a few times where he'd zoned out while on his bike only to find himself, inexplicably, outside of her place. Now he found that there was a part of him that didn't quiet down until he confirmed that she was there for the night. He needed to know she was home, that she was safe.

He reached her place where she was already inside, her red mini-cooper parked in the driveway. He shut the bike off in what had become his normal place. The spot was perfect, minimum lighting so she couldn't look out her window and see him but he was able to see her shadow moving through the light curtains.

The phone in his pocket vibrated and he pulled it out, turning his back to Felicity's on the off-chance she looked outside and saw him illuminated by the phone screen.

It was a text from Laurel. '_Where are you? I thought you were coming over_?'

He barely suppressed a groan, typing a quick reply that he would be there soon before shoving the phone back in his pocket, annoyed. He'd forgotten that he told her he would be there. They'd been tentatively seeing each other for the last few months but Oliver was discovering that his feelings for her were more conflicted than he'd first suspected.

He loved Laurel and he always would but the more time that passed, the more he doubted that he was _in _love with her. He'd spent five years trying to get back to her, hoping against hope that she could forgive him for his past transgressions and she had. It had taken time but she had. Then Tommy had died and she'd fallen apart. Things were better now and she'd proven to be a pillar of support after the showdown with Slade and the loss of his mother and he was mostly content with their relationship.

But there was a part of him that had to admit that he'd spent five years in love with the idea of Laurel and everything that she had come to represent to him. Love, safety, family. They were different people now, time had passed and changed them both in dramatic ways. These changes had made them better friends and he was beginning to think that's what they were meant to be. Friends.

There was also the small matter of the woman whose house he was outside. He'd known that he'd cared for her before he'd said those words that night but he hadn't realized how much he'd really cared until they'd been standing alone in the mansion.

He hadn't planned to say _that_ but he couldn't help himself. Staring into her blue eyes as realization had washed over her, when he'd told her that Slade had taken the wrong woman, had made his heart stop. The words had slipped out, unbidden, and he'd hated himself when he'd slipped the cure into her hand, hated that it had negated what he said.

He'd been terrified from the moment Slade had fallen for the trap, hearing him say that he had _his_ Felicity had made his blood run cold. When he'd found her, sword against her throat, he'd wanted to say screw the plan, wanted to put another arrow in Slade's skull but he hadn't. He'd trusted her, believed in her and it had worked. He'd taken Slade down without killing him, in large part thanks to Felicity.

It had taken a large amount of restraint while they'd stood on the beach of Lian Yu to not take her into his arms and tell her that he'd meant every word he'd said in the mansion. It wasn't the right time though, he wasn't sure if he was ready to admit to himself how he really felt about her, let alone tell her. He wasn't going to risk jeopardizing their partnership or friendship, it meant far too much to him. She meant far too much to him for him to risk losing her.

He sighed as her place fell into darkness, telling him it was time to leave. He drove away, his mind too busy fantasizing what it would be like to knock on her door, kiss her senseless and join her in bed, to notice her watching him from her bedroom window.

* * *

The following day went by quickly, the kind of day she was grateful for. It was Friday and Felicity had spent most of the day making sure everything important was taken care of before they left for the weekend. She'd been busy gathering her things, not noticing that Oliver was standing on the other side of her desk, watching her, amusement sparkling in his eyes. She jumped slightly when she finally caught sight of him, earning him a playful glare.

"Are you heading over to the station?" He asked.

She nodded and swept a piece of her loose hair behind her ear. "Yes but it shouldn't take too long. I should be done in an hour or so."

He nodded but his eyes didn't leave her's, his gaze burrowing into her's, sending a shiver up her spine. These moments had happened more often as of late but they never failed to steal her breath. He smiled, a rare full smile, and shoved his hands in his pockets. "Ok, I'll see you later." He lingered for a second before pivoting around and walking away.

She smiled and shook her head before grabbing her things. She felt like they were at an impasse of sorts, sharing meaningful moments but never acting on them, unsaid things plain on both of their faces but never spoken out loud. She was content with it, she was happy simply having him in her life, satisfied while working side by side with him. Maybe if she was a braver person or if she was selfish, she could admit how she felt but he wasn't ready for it. Hell, she wasn't sure she was. Until then, she was happy being his girl Wednesday.

She'd decided, for the sake of keeping things _normal_, not to bring up his new habit of following her home. Last night hadn't been the first time she'd busted him sitting outside her place, barely visible. If she hadn't memorized every edge and curve of his body, every mannerism and body movement, she might not have known it was him. Her neighbor had actually been the one to bring it to her attention one morning while Felicity was leaving for work. Mr. Shultz had been taking the garbage out and asked her if she knew anything about the man who was hanging around on his bike late at night. She'd been startled at first, almost mentioning it to either Oliver and Diggle before deciding against it. It had taken two nights of trying to get sneaky glimpses out her curtains to see who it was before she'd seen him. When she'd discovered it was Oliver, she was relieved and anxious at the same time. So she'd kept her mouth shut, checking every night to see if he was there, experiencing the same jolt of feelings every time. She'd made sure to tell Mr. Shultz not to worry or call the cops, it was simply an over-protective friend. His face had told her he didn't completely buy her story but he hadn't called her out, even if technically it was true.

Traffic was busy so her drive to the station had taken longer than she'd expected. She'd lucked out and found a decent parking spot, jumping out and locking the car before dashing across the street and into the building. She grinned the second she caught sight of Lieutenant Lance, which he returned in full.

He walked over to her and placed a hand on her shoulder, guiding her towards his office. "Thanks for coming by, Felicity."

"Of course, Lieutenant, I'm always glad to help." She quickly glanced around, checking to see if the new IT guy was there but she didn't see him. '_Thank God_,' She thought. She understood why he didn't like her, Lance shouldn't be calling her to help but the IT guy had no way to know that she had developed a special bond with the Lieutenant over the last year and a half. Either way, she was happy to not see the slightly over-weight man glaring at her from over a computer screen.

It had been an easy problem, taking a little under an hour. "You're all good," she said as stood up, smoothing out the lavender dress she was wearing. "Though you really should let the new guy do this for you. You're making him hate me."

He chuckled and opened the door for her. "I highly doubt that."

She walked past him and nearly ran into a prisoner being escorted through by two officers. She took a quick step back and avoided the collision but his head whipped towards her. He stared at her curiously for a moment before an unnerving smile came over his face. He shook his head and laughed loudly as he turned his head away from her. She narrowed her eyes and watched him disappear, his laugh echoing through the building.

"Who was that?" She asked Lieutenant Lance as he escorted her out.

He gave her a funny look. "That's Frank Shepard, he's the right hand man of Marcetti. He wasn't at the warehouse last night but they got him this afternoon."

'_That's why he looked familiar_,' she thought. Marcetti was the guy they caught last night and both him and Shepard had extensive rap sheets. Marcetti had recently been exonerated of homicide and Shepard had been on the run for the past month on charges of attempted homicide, kidnapping and a chunk of other charges.

Lieutenant Lance stopped just in front of the exit. "Were you with the Arrow last night? Did these guys see your face?" His face was etched with worry.

She shook her head jerkily. "No, I've only seen pictures of them, I've never seen them face to face." She pulled her jacket tighter, a deep chill settling in her despite the warm building.

"Just be careful, ok? I wouldn't want to be on the wrong side of the Cassavette's."

She nodded, assuring him she would and gave him a warm smile before bidding good night. Her senses were in high alert as she crossed the street, making her way back to her car. She already had the keys in her hand and she tried to get in without appearing nervous on the off-chance someone was watching her.

The Cassavette crime family had been trying to take roots in Starling City for the last few months, funneling drugs and guns into the city. Marcetti had been here to set it up, playing the role of representative for the family. It had taken almost two weeks of research to find the warehouse, she'd spent damn near every night delving into the lives of the Cassavette family, frustrated by a lack of progress but she'd gotten a break the night before last, leading them to the warehouse last night.

She was wigged out by the way Shepard had looked at her, laughing like he knew something she didn't. As she headed to the lair, she planned to find out anything else she could about Shepard. She couldn't think of anyway that Shepard could know who she was but she decided to err on the side of caution as far as they were concerned. The Lieutenant had a point, she did NOT want to be on the wrong side of the Cassavette's.


	2. Chapter 2

Oliver was slightly worried about Felicity. She'd walked into the lair around seven o'clock and had immediately become engrossed at her computer, muttering greetings to everyone as she hustled by. Smirking and thinking nothing of it at first, he'd continued sparring with Roy and Dig.

Dig left first, wanting to spend some more time with Lyla as her due date neared, but not before making sure to shoot a pointed glance towards Felicity. Oliver nodded, letting him know he was aware of the situation. Roy had noticed too and bailed soon after, saying he'd promised to meet up with Sin. He grabbed a towel and wiped off his sweat soaked skin, tossing it aside and leaning against the wall, watching her.

Her hair was up in a ponytail, swept off to one side and leaving the back of her neck exposed. The urge to walk up behind her and touch her bare skin surged through him. '_Stop,' _He thought. He frowned and clenched his fists when he realized that he'd actually taken a step forward, his subconscious pulling him physically towards her. Frustration rippled through him and it was mostly directed towards himself.

What was he doing? He couldn't keep doing this, he had to stop thinking about her like this, he had to stop following her home. The thing was that he didn't want to. He wanted to have the right to walk up and touch her, to be able to go into her house instead of standing outside, hidden by shadows.

He was tired of living this lie, he lived enough of them as it was, but he didn't know what to do. He wouldn't be able to live with himself if he screwed this up, if he lost her. First things first though, him and Laurel needed to discuss some things.

Shaking off thoughts of Laurel, he walked across the room, coming to stand next to her. "Felicity."

She didn't hear him, her eyes never leaving the screen, fingers tapping away against the keys. He said her name again with the same results. Sighing, he lightly touched her shoulder and she jumped out of her seat, startled. He held his hands up. "Sorry."

She rubbed her temples. "That one was on me." She frowned, looking around the empty room. "Where are Diggle and Roy?"

"They left about half an hour ago but you were pretty absorbed in whatever you're doing over here. What is exactly that you're doing, anyways?"

She sighed loudly. "I was seeing if I could find some more information on Marcetti and his guys."

His brow furrowed. "You think you missed something?"

Her gaze flicked back to the computer. "I don't know. I figured it was a good idea to do a little more digging since I'm sure Marcetti's arrest isn't going to stop the Cassavette's from trying to set up shop in this city, might as well be ready for the next guys, whoever they might be."

She wasn't telling him something. He knew her well enough to know when there were thoughts churning in her head that she wasn't saying. He opened his mouth to push for more information when his phone rang. He gave Felicity an apologetic look and pulled it out of his pocket. Seeing Laurel's name flash on-screen, he stepped away from Felicity as he answered.

"Hey," he greeted. "What's up?"

"Look, I know that you weren't going to come over tonight," she paused, the silence heavy over the phone. "But I was hoping you could come over for a little and we could talk."

His eyebrows raised up in surprise. "Yeah, I can be there in fifteen minutes." They said quick goodbyes and Oliver turned back to Felicity. "I have to go. Are you going to be here for a little while?"

She nodded. "Yeah, there's a few things I wanted to do before I go home." She smiled at him and his chest tightened. "Go. Enjoy your night with Laurel."

He wanted to tell her it wasn't what she thought, that he was pretty sure his talk with Laurel wasn't going to end with him staying there, but he didn't. _'Friends. We're friends,' _he told himself. So instead, he said, "Good night, Felicity."

He arrived at Laurel's apartment twenty minutes later. She opened the door, greeting him with a kiss on the cheek and gesturing for him to sit in the living room. She sat on the couch with him but kept her distance.

"What's going on, Laurel?" He asked after they sat in silence for a long moment.

She sighed. "This," she gestured between the two of them. "Isn't working, Ollie."

He sat on the edge of the couch, his hands clasped together, eyes on the floor. He couldn't disagree with her but he didn't want her to see the relief that washed over him at her words. She reached out and took his hands into hers. "Ollie, look at me." He obliged, meeting her eyes. "Whatever this is that we've been doing these past few months isn't a relationship. We barely see each other and when we do," she trailed off. She looked away for a second and when she looked back him, her eyes were wet. "You told me after Sara came back that you had loved me for half of your life and I've loved you for just as long but I don't think we're in love with each other anymore."

"I do love you, Laurel."

"And I love you, Ollie but I'm not in love with you." Even though he'd been thinking the same thing, a part of him expected those words to hurt and he was pleasantly surprised that the feeling never came.

"I'm sorry, Laurel." He leaned forward and placed a light kiss on her forehead. "You're right."

She playfully pushed him away. "Of course I am," she teased. Her face turned serious again. "We owed it to each other to try. I think if we hadn't, there would always be a part of us that would wonder if we were meant to be together and now we know." She smiled at him fondly. "I'm always going to love you, Oliver. You're my best friend and I'll always be here for you."

He smiled back, feeling lighter than he had earlier. "One day you're going to find the man who loves you the way you deserve to be loved."

She made a face."One day but not anytime soon. I think I want to be on my own for a little while, enjoy some me time."

"Maybe I'll have to do that too."

Laurel chuckled and gave him a look. "I think it's a little late for that, Oliver."

His face scrunched in confusion and he waited for her to elaborate.

She raised an eyebrow before she shook her head. "You're already in love with someone. I've seen the way you look at her, the way you watch her when you think no one is looking," she said with a sad tinge to her voice.

Oliver looked away, uncomfortable with the change in topic.

"You might not be ready to admit how you feel but the feelings are there and you can't deny that. I know you're scared and maybe now isn't the best time but if you wait too long you might lose her anyway."

He sat there quiet for a beat, gaining a new appreciation for Laurel. "She deserves someone better," he whispered.

"You are a hero, Oliver," she said, fiercely. "Something that, correct me if I'm wrong, makes that argument completely invalid," she added softly.

A small smile graced his lips. "Thank you, Laurel, you're a good friend."

* * *

The next morning, Felicity woke up at the crack of dawn. Well, technically, she got out of bed, seeing as she never actually slept last night. A refreshing shower and half a pot of coffee later had made her feel only slightly better.

She'd found absolutely nothing new out about Shepard or Marcetti. Not that she even knew what she was looking for. She was starting to feel paranoid but she couldn't deny the feeling in her gut that she was missing something. The second that look had come across Shepard's face, she'd felt uneasy but had found nothing that had any sort of connection to her. At this point, she could tell you every detail about their lives that was out there to find. She wasn't the type of person to give up when something was bothering her but this had been a thin thread to begin with. Besides, they were both in jail and not a threat, she needed to shake this off.

Determined to do just that, she spent her morning and afternoon taking care of mind-numbing chores that always fell to the wayside during her busy week. Cleaning and scrubbing everything felt therapeutic, clearing her mind better than the shower had.

After a quick trip to the store to pick up some stuff, she found herself home alone with nothing to do but that was remedied by her phone buzzing on the counter where she'd set it down, Roy's name flashing across the screen.

"Hey," she answered, already knowing where this conversation was going.

"Any news, sightings, anything at all?"

Her heart broke for him and she wished she could tell him something good. "I'm sorry, Roy, I haven't found anything yet, I've found no sign of Thea anywhere. I'll check everything again after I get to the lair tonight but I'd get an alert if anything new came up."

He sighed, audibly, the same reaction he had every time they had this discussion. "I don't understand how she could just disappear off the face of the earth," Roy growled in frustration.

"We'll find her, Roy. I promise." She meant it but she was beginning to think she'd underestimated how hard it would be to find a nineteen year girl, especially when you had no idea where to start. She told him she'd be at the lair in the next couple hours before hanging up.

She took some time to do her hair and make up, putting on a pair of dark, tight jeans, a plain white v-neck and a small black jacket. When she arrived at the lair forty-five minutes later, she was greeted by the sight of Roy using the salmon ladder. "Did you come here right after we got off the phone?" She asked as him as she took her coat and sat down at her computers.

He dropped to the floor and gave her a sheepish look. "I had nothing better to do."

"That I understand," she commiserated. Her social life was severely lacking. Work and helping Oliver filled up the majority of her time but when she wasn't doing either of those things, she found herself at a loss. She used to love to curl up on the couch and read a book or watch a movie but lately she found she had a hard time doing anything like that. The last couple years of her life had turned her into somewhat of an adrenaline junkie. She didn't want to be jumping out of another plane anytime soon but sitting on the couch doing nothing didn't seem as appealing as it once did.

"I have to get her back, Felicity," Roy's impassioned plea pulled her out of her thoughts.

"I know, Roy. I know." The pain on his face was breaking her heart. "And I will do my absolute best to find her but you need to accept the fact that we might not find her until she wants to be found."

He nodded jerkily. "I know." He ran his hands through his short hair and started pacing. "I just feel like this is my fault. I lied to her. I lied to her and I screwed this all up and I lost the best thing that ever happened to me."

"You're not the only one that lied to her, Roy," Oliver's voice came from the stairs. He walked into the room, hands in the pocket of his jeans. "If there's anyone who should be shouldering the blame of Thea leaving, it's me." He shook his head, eyes betraying how much he missed her. "I wanted to protect her from how awful this world could truly be, I wanted to preserve her innocence but that was naïve." He straightened up and leveled his gaze at Roy. "She will come back, when she's ready." He walked up to Roy and squeezed his shoulder, doing his best to comfort him, before turning back and facing Felicity. "What's on the agenda for tonight?"

She shrugged. "I'm keeping an eye on the police scanner but so far, it seems like a quiet night."

He nodded and looked at Roy. "You up for some archery practice?" Roy grinned like he'd been waiting for Oliver to ask.

Archery practice was becoming something of a competition between the two of them, a constant game of one-upmanship. Roy had a long way to go before he'd be at the same skill level as Oliver but he was improving by leaps and bounds.

She listened to the sounds of their (mostly) friendly competition for almost an hour, working on a new software program, when an alert popped up on her screen. She read through it quickly before getting Roy and Oliver's attentions.

Oliver walked over to her and she spun the chair around to face him. "I have a lead on those recent robberies. I happened to catch a partial plate off the security camera pointed towards the parking lot at the last gas station they hit. I found the car a few blocks later but I lost it soon after that. I haven't seen it again but after running the partial plate and the make of the car, I just narrowed it down to two addresses, both in the Glades." She picked a pen up, twirling it in her finger, and leaned back in her chair.

liver looked at Roy, raising an eyebrow, who shrugged in return. "Robbers it is," Oliver told her as he walked over and grabbed his bow.

What about Dig?" She asked.

"Taking the night off, it's nothing Roy and I can't take care of."

She watched them leave, yelling after them to be careful, and turned her comm on, ready to work.

They weren't at the first address but they were at the second, along with all the money they hadn't spent yet. It hadn't taken long for Roy and Oliver to dispatch them and she reluctantly left an anonymous tip with an officer on duty. She threw herself back into her programming until she heard footsteps on the stairs.

"Why do I feel like I did all the work in this particular escapade?" She joked as she turned around and took in Oliver in all his Arrow glory, a sight she never tired of.

Oliver gaped as if he was offended. "Hey, I got punched in the face."

She got out of her chair and strode over to him, though staying out of reaching distance. She gestured towards his face. "That looks as good as it did when you left so—" she flushed. "I just mean that he must not have hit you very hard seeing as there are no marks on your face." His eyes were glittering with amusement and something else...she wanted to call it affection but that thought made her uncomfortable.

She cleared her throat, suddenly nervous. "Did Roy go home?"

Somehow, they'd moved closer to each other without her noticing. "Yeah, I don't think much else is going to happen tonight."

She made a noise of agreement, words escaping her for the moment. Something was different with him, she hadn't noticed it earlier but she sure was now. His presence seemed electric, more so than usual, and it felt like the air was being sucked out of the room, every hair on her body standing on edge. She wanted to say something, anything, but she couldn't. She could only continue to stare into his stormy eyes, watching as his eyes slipped down to her lips.

Reality stepped in and she breathed deeply, taking a step back. She had to get out of here. She turned around, grabbing her things, hastily putting her jacket on. "I think it's time for me to go home."

"Will I see you tomorrow?"

She stopped in her rush to leave, taken aback by the mundane question. He never asked that, assuming he'd see her or that she was only a phone call away. Or maybe he had asked her that before and it was the hopeful edge to it that was throwing her off. Either way, she had to get out of there, she was swiftly losing her capacity to think straight. "Maybe. I don't know. Call me if you need me." She ducked out of there before he could say anything else.

Thoughts of Oliver filled her head on the drive home and she was slightly surprised when she found herself in her driveway, not remembering the drive there. She took a deep breath before shutting the car off and getting out. She walked up, sliding her key into the lock and pushing the door open but before she could step inside, a voice she didn't recognize rang out from behind. Habit made her spin around while her right hand dipped into her coat pocket where it wrapped around the taser that had been her birthday gift from Dig.

"Felicity Smoak?" Asked the strange, tall, dark and handsome man standing in front of her. He appeared to be in his early thirties, dressed in a dark t-shirt and dark jeans.

"Were you hiding in the bushes?" She blurted.

The man smirked. "I need to talk to you. Can we go inside? It's too dangerous for us to be talking out here." His eyes darted around, emphasizing his words.

"You're telling me it's safer for me to invite a strange man into my home than to stand out in the open? I don't think so." Her left hand curled around the door knob and she started to push it open. "Who are you and how do you know my name?"

He chuckled and ran a hand through his messy, black hair. "I should have known you'd be a pain in the ass," he mumbled to himself. He turned serious and stepped closer to her, hands help up in the universal sign of _I mean no harm._"It is really not safe for us to be having this conversation out here, Felicity."

"I think I'd rather not have this talk anywhere. You need to leave." She really hoped he'd walk away, even though she was dying to know who he was and what he wanted.

He clenched his jaw, frustration flashing across his face. "There are some people looking for you and I was sent here to get you out of the city, keep you safe."

She couldn't help but laugh. "I really think you have the wrong Felicity Smoak, buddy. No one is looking for me and I am perfectly safe in Starling City. Well, as safe as you can be in this city." Now would be a really convenient time for Oliver to show up but why would she have that kind of luck? Of course the one night she found herself in something that could actually be dangerous outside of her own home would be the one night he didn't check on her. "I don't care who sent you or why you're here, you need to leave."

"Or what? You'll taze me? I am the last person you should fear, he wouldn't have sent me otherwise," he snapped, annoyed.

"Who is he? Who sent you?" She finally asked, curiosity getting the best of her.

He sighed, one hand on his hip, the other perpetually running through his hair. "Your father, Felicity. Your father sent me."


	3. Chapter 3

Felicity stared at the strange man who was in her house, frowning at him.

_Your father, Felicity. Your father sent me. _

That sentence was ringing inside her head, over and over again. Her father. She'd laughed in this man's face, told him he had the wrong person but then that stupid nickname her father had always called her had come out of his mouth and she'd known he was telling the truth. So, she'd let him in and now they were standing in the living room, her back to the door so she could bolt for the it if it became necessary. Her jacket was still on, allowing her easy access to the taser in her pocket but she really hoped she didn't need.

"We should really get a move on before they set things in motion. Your father—"

"My father?" She snorted. "He has no say in my life. He has no right to send someone here to tell me what to do. In fact, I have no idea how the hell he found me but his presence is definitely not welcome in my life."

"I don't know anything about your relationship with your father. The only thing he told me was that you would be reluctant to believe that he sent me." He looked like this was the last conversation he wanted to be having and she almost felt bad for him. Almost.

"Look—" she stopped, realizing she didn't know his name. "What's your name? Actually, scratch that, I don't think I want to know."

He narrowed his dark eyes at her. "It's Owen. We really should—"

"Look, Owen," she cut him off. "I want nothing to do with this. I am staying in Starling City and that's not changing. Besides, you haven't even told me what I'm in danger from exactly."

He grunted. "You know that most people who are told their lives are in danger would listen to people who are trying to help them."

"Well, first, I don't think that's true and second, I'm not most people. I don't know you or my father and you didn't answer my question."

"I didn't realize you'd asked a question."

This guy was starting to irritate her. "Who's after me?"

He moved past her, taking a seat on _her_ couch and propping his feet on _her_ coffee table. She stared at him incredulously until he rolled his eyes and put his feet back on the floor. "The Cassavette family has a target on your back."

Her stomach rolled but she wasn't all that surprised. She'd been expecting _something_. She sank down on the opposite end of the couch. "Why?"

"Because you work with the Arrow."

"How do they know that?"

"Someone's been following you."

"Why?"

"What are you? Three? Enough with the questions! I don't think you understand the gravity of this situation," he snapped at her. "There is a storm brewing and you are right in the middle of it." He stood up and stared down at her. "Are you always this difficult? Or do you think you're invincible because of your connection to the Arrow? Because that's the exact thing that is going to get you killed."

"How is my father connected to the Cassavette's?"

A sharp bark of laughter erupted from his throat. "What does it matter?"

She pushed off the couch, angry. "You're right. It doesn't matter because I don't care what he has to say." She stormed over to the door and yanked it open. "You can leave."

He shook his head, lip curling up. "Fine. Have it your way." He stopped in the doorway, leaning in closer to her. "I wouldn't stay here though. It didn't take me long to find you, I'm sure Cassavette's guys aren't far behind."

She said nothing, staring him down, hoping he couldn't see how scared she really was. She arched an eyebrow and tapped her foot, once, impatient. Owen shook his head and mumbled something about it being her funeral before finally walking out the door. She shut the door, locking the doorknob, the dead bolt and the chain lock, her hand shaking more violently with each lock. She turned, her back leaning against the door for support, and tried to take deep calming breaths. Slowly, she slid down the door until she was on the floor, arms wrapped around her legs, trying to physically hold herself together.

Her father. She couldn't even begin to wrap her mind around it, she hadn't seen or heard from the man since she was six and he had the nerve to send someone here to whisk her out of the city. Two sides of her were warring, one part furious at the man who abandoned her and the other was anxious, yet excited. She'd spent her entire childhood waiting for him to come home, wondering what she would do, what she say to him when she saw him again but the moment never came. She never got the chance to tell him how she felt, how much he hurt her. It was that little girl who was anxious and excited at the prospect of seeing of her father. She hated herself a little in that moment, knowing there were bigger things to be worried about but she couldn't help it, couldn't control what paths her mind took. She felt six years old all over again. A tear slipped down her cheek and she wiped it away angrily.

She needed to focus on the life and death part of the conversation she'd had with Owen. The Cassavette's were after her and that was not good. Owen had been right in one aspect, she couldn't stay at home, it wasn't safe. Though, she didn't understand how they weren't already here, they should have found her the second they knew her name, she wasn't exactly hiding. Unless, Owen was lying to her, which was also a very good possibility. If it wasn't for Owen calling her little Bumblebee, she wouldn't believe him.

It was one of the few things she remembered about her father, he always called her his little Bumblebee. She'd asked her mom once why he called her that and she'd snapped that she didn't know and that it didn't matter. She cringed recalling that she'd said pretty much the same thing to Owen. That had been the last time she'd asked Fiona Smoak anything about her father, learning about him from things he'd left behind. Like her.

Slowly, she pulled herself off the floor, unsure of how long she'd been there. What she did know was that there was no way in hell she was staying here, she was going to pack a bag and head over to the lair. There had been a brief time where Oliver had been living there while he searched for a new place and she knew for a fact his cot was still there. She ran around the house, shoving clothes and toiletries into the barely used duffel that had been in the bottom of the closet. She threw the bag over her shoulder, doing one last check to make sure she grabbed everything, and pulled the taser out of her pocket. She didn't think she'd be ambushed on her way to the car but she wasn't taking any chances.

An hour later, she parked her car in her usual spot, hidden away from the building. The lair was only a ten minute drive from her place but she was worried about being followed so she'd taken the roundabout way, taking turns that led her away from the lair until she was convinced no one was following her. For all she knew, she'd already been followed her before but it was better to be safe than sorry.

She kept the taser in her hand as she grabbed the duffel out of the trunk. She knew she should call one of the guys, let them know what was going on but she didn't want to worry them, or at least not until it was a more respectable time. '_Home sweet home_,' she thought as she made her way into the building.

Oliver hit the training dummy a little harder than he needed to, sending a chunk flying. His frustration hadn't abated at all in the hour or two he had spent down here. He was drenched in sweat, his body tired and aching from the over-exertion but he didn't care, he needed to keep hitting things. Light footsteps on the stairs startled him and he was shocked to find Felicity standing at the bottom of them, duffel bag over her shoulder. She looked as surprised to see him as he was to see her.

"Felicity? What are you doing here? It's three in the morning," his tone more irritated than he wanted it be.

Her tired eyes widened. "I'd ask you the same thing but I have a feeling you'd bite my head off," she shot back. Her body slumped, the strap of the duffel bag sliding down her shoulder. "I'm sorry, I thought no one would be here. I was going to crash here for the night. I can go—"

"Felicity," he cut her off. "What happened?" Something had happened since he'd last seen her, he could read it all over her face and he took a moment to push aside the irrational anger and jealousy that had driven him back here tonight.

She dropped her stuff on the floor and crossed her arms, refusing to look at him. "I don't even know where to start."

He took a step towards her. "Start with why you're going to sleep on the cot here instead of in your bed at home."

"The Cassavette's are looking for me, I guess, I don't know. The information didn't come from what you would call a reputable source."

"What do you mean the Cassavette's are looking you?" He asked through gritted teeth.

"I assume that means there's a price on my head or something, I don't know how mobsters work. Do they send out a group text? Or maybe they're old school and there's a phone tree or something." She laughed bitterly. "Turns out someone's been following me and they know that I help the Arrow. Add that to fact that the two top guys they sent here are now in Iron Heights because of the Arrow and I'd say that they're pissed."

Once again, Felicity's life was in danger because of him. Mobsters, none the less. "Why were you being followed in the first place?"

"Again, I don't know. He wasn't exactly forthcoming with answers. He was more your life's in danger, stop asking so many questions, get out of the city." Felicity rolled her eyes.

His mind flashed back to earlier when he'd gotten to Felicity's house. It had taken him a minute to recover when she'd left the lair so by the time he'd gotten there, she was already inside. It had taken a moment for him to realize there were two shadows inside instead of just Felicity. He could tell her back was to the window and someone was facing her, an undeniably male someone. He couldn't tell how close they were standing but it seemed pretty close, the male shadow looming over her but it didn't seem threatening. Worry flashed through him and he almost ran up to the door to break it down but he restrained himself. Her car was the only one in the driveway and there didn't seem to be any unusual ones parked on the street. The male shadow had moved, taking a seat on the couch, a couch that he'd never gotten to see, let alone sit on. Soon, Felicity's shadow moved towards the couch before she slowly took a seat on the other end. It occurred to him that she didn't seem to be in any danger and he was rocked by the idea of Felicity having late night visitors. He'd never seen anyone else here all those nights he'd ended up outside but that didn't mean anything. He took one last look at the shadows sitting on the couch and unable to take it any longer, he'd driven off on his bike.

"Who's he?" His jealousy and anger rearing it's head again and he did his best to shove it down.

She glowered. "Owen something, I didn't catch his last name."

"What do you mean you didn't catch his name?" He asked, confused.

"Like I said, he wasn't exactly forthcoming with information. Not to mention, I kicked him out the second I figured out he wasn't going to tell me anything important."

"Let me get this straight, a guy named Owen told you the Cassavette family is after you because they know you work with the Arrow?"

"I think that sums it up."

He paced around a little, trying to fit the pieces together. "How does Owen know this?"

She shuffled her feet and stared at the floor like she wanted it to swallow her up. He stopped pacing and moved so he was standing in front of her. "Felicity?"

She stared up at him, something he couldn't pinpoint swirling in her eyes. "My father sent him." Her chin quivered but she quickly pulled herself together.

"I thought your father left."

She nodded. "He did, I haven't seen him since I was six. Then out of nowhere, this random guy shows up telling me that my father sent him to get me out of town."

"So you don't know this Owen? He was just sent here to warn you?" He knew the situation was serious but he couldn't help but feel relieved. He wasn't too late. A part of him was ashamed at his actions, he'd gotten worked up over nothing, not that he had a right to in the first place but it had been a major blow to think someone, other than him, was spending time with Felicity. He'd immediately assumed they'd been spending time together in a romantic way, it'd only flashed briefly through his mind that she was in danger before he'd jumped to conclusions. And now looking back, he saw how far he'd actually jumped, that there had been no indication other than the time and presumed gender of the other shadow. A new thought made him clench his fists in frustration towards both him and Felicity. "You let this guy in your house? Without knowing who he was? Just because he said he knew your father, a man you don't even know? He could've killed you!" He snapped.

"You think I don't know that?" She shot back. "I had the taser the whole time and I didn't let him in until he'd proved he knows my father!"

"How do you know for sure he knows your father? And how is your father involved with the Cassavette's?"

"I just know that he knows my father and I don't know how he's connected to them, ok? I don't know anything, I was a little too shocked to cover all my bases." Her eyes widened and she pointed a finger, accusingly, at Oliver. "You did follow me home tonight! Otherwise how would you even know I let him into the house?"

"Maybe if you guys had stayed outside, I would have known something was going on instead of thinking you were sleeping with him!" He knew they both needed to take a step back and get themselves together before they went too far, before they laid everything out on the table but he was starting to think they were already on a runaway train.

She laughed but it wasn't a friendly one. "That's what you thought? Is that why you were full of attitude when I got here? Is that why you're here in the middle of the night? Because you were jealous?" She stared at him, disbelieving.

"Could you blame me for thinking that? What else am I supposed to think when there's a man in your house at two in the morning?"

"The last time I checked," her voice had dropped to a deadly whisper as she moved closer to him, staring up at him. "You shouldn't be following me home in the first place, let alone be worried about who I'm spending my time with. I'm sure Laurel wouldn't be happy to know how involved in my social life you are and I know she would be pissed if she knew you've been sitting outside my house at night for the last six months."

"You know?" He whispered.

She gave him a look. "Of course I know, Oliver. I had to convince old Mr. Shultz not to call the cops on you. Could you imagine the headlines? Oliver Queen arrested outside assistant's home. What the hell were you thinking?" She poked him, hard, in the chest.

"I needed to make sure you were safe!"

"Make sure I was safe? Will you make up your damn mind, Oliver?" She asked the last part softly.

He didn't say anything, he didn't know what to say. He was angry with himself for letting his emotions cloud his judgement. The guy her father sent could have easily killed her and Oliver had left her with him, assuming that one of his bigger, unsaid fears was happening.

"You can't be with Laurel and follow me home, Oliver—"

"We broke up," he cut her off, compelled to tell her. Her eyes widened and her features softened before anger flamed back up.

"This isn't about Laurel," she said after a second. "This is about us. This is about the fact that you're so concerned for my safety that you're following me home. This is about you being blinded by jealousy that you have no right to!"

"Blinded by jealousy? My first reaction was that you were in trouble. How would you feel now if I'd busted down the door and come rampaging in like I wanted to? How would you feel, Felicity?"

"I don't know! I have no idea how I feel about anything where you're concerned!" Her hands were fisted in her hair, frustration and anger rolling off of her. "You're telling me now you follow me home because you're worried about my safety yet six months ago you had no problem offering me up to Slade as bait."

Her accusation slammed into him and he could see the regret in her eyes as soon as the words came out but they cut the same. "If there had been another choice, I would've made it. It killed me to put you in danger like that," he admitted for the first time out loud. "But I didn't have another choice."

"What about telling me you loved me?" She asked quietly. "Was that really your only choice? Because in my humble opinion, the plan would have worked the same if you'd just said that he took the wrong woman. Or was the fake proclamation of love just the cherry on top for you? The selling point that drove the whole thing home?"

"It wasn't fake!" The words boomed from his chest before he could stop them. She inhaled sharply, doe eyes looking up at him. He was breathing heavily even though he hadn't moved a muscle.

The computer beeped loudly, once. Then again. And again. Felicity groaned and stomped over to the computer. Oliver took this second to gain a shred of his composure.

"This is not good," Felicity called to him.

He turned around and walked over to her, extremely conscious of how close they were standing. "What is it?"

They shared a look, agreeing to table this conversation for the moment. "That beeping noise was an alert I have set for Iron Heights." She shook her head before continuing. "Their incompetency is the bane of my existence and this just proves that."

"Felicity," he said to get her back on track.

"There was a break out earlier tonight, well, this morning, technically. Two prisoners escaped with help from a guard who's now vanished. Is it a prerequisite that you have to be morally suspect to work at Iron Heights?" She sighed.

"Who escaped?" He knew that she avoiding it.

"Frank Shepard was one."

His jaw clenched. "Marcetti's guy. I take it that means Marcetti was the other escapee?"

"Nope. He was the prisoner who was killed during the escape, he didn't even make it out of his cell."

"Looks like Shepard earned himself a promotion. Who was the other one?"

"William Tockman AKA the Clock King. See, this is why I hate Iron Heights," she fumed. "Do you think that's a coincidence or something else?"

"I don't know. I hope it's a coincidence but I wouldn't guarantee it."

She looked at him sheepishly. "Also, there's something I need to tell you about Frank Shepard."

He tensed and listened silently while she told him of her odd encounter with Shepard at the police station. "We're missing something here. This is all tied together but we're missing a piece," he said, frustrated.

"A piece that I'm sure is connected to my father."

He agreed with her but he didn't say it. He looked at his watch, noting that it was four in the morning and there was only a few hours until they both had to be at Queen Consolidated. Normally, he'd suggest not going in but he had a meeting in the morning that he'd already had Felicity more times than appropriate. Losing the company made him take it much more seriously than he had before. "There's nothing we can do now. We should try to get a few hours of sleep. My apartment isn't that far from here."

He'd used a small part of his half of the inheritance money he'd gotten after Moira's death to rent out a decent apartment. After regaining control of QC, he'd also gotten back the mansion and Verdant. The club's doors remained closed, awaiting Thea's return and he hadn't been able to go back to the mansion when the halls were packed full of ghosts, so he'd kept the apartment.

"Oliver, I couldn't—" Felicity started.

"You need to sleep. I'll sleep on the couch, you can have the bed."

"The cot is perfectly fine, I can sleep here."

"I can't."

Her eyebrow quirked up.

"We don't know if they've found this place so I'm not going to take the chance. I can't sleep here so that leaves my apartment." She still looked hesitant and he didn't blame her so he added, "Unless you really want to sleep on an uncomfortable cot down here, all by yourself, while mobsters are looking for you?"

She frowned and scanned the room before her shoulders slumped and she got out of the chair. "Fine. But we're coming up with a new plan tomorrow."

"Agreed," he said as he picked up her duffel bag. It was only for a few hours but he doubted he was going to sleep knowing Felicity was sleeping in his bed. The feeling that he was on a runaway train resurfaced but there was nothing he could do but brace himself.


	4. Chapter 4

Felicity was surprised to find the next morning that she'd actually managed to catch a couple of hours of sleep. She stretched out and looked around the sparse bedroom, having been too exhausted last night to pay much attention to her surroundings, not even bothering to take her jeans off. She swung her legs over the edge of the queen size bed but didn't get down yet, taking a second to wake up.

`The only things in his bedroom were the bed, a cherry wood dresser and matching nightstand. There were a few pictures scattered between the dresser and nightstand, all of them of Moira and Thea. Her heart ached for him as she thought of how much he missed them. She had hope that Thea would come back, though forgiving Oliver was another thing entirely.

Shaking off her depressing thoughts, she grabbed some clothes for work out of her bag, along with everything she needed for a shower and to get ready. She quietly opened the bedroom and tiptoed out, not wanting to wake Oliver up on the off-chance he was still asleep.

She was too busy trying to be quiet to realize Oliver was already awake, leaning against the kitchen counter, cup of coffee in hand, watching her in amusement. "Morning," he said, startling her, causing her to drop some of her things.

She glared at him, painfully aware of the mess her hair must be, and scooped her things back up. "I'm going to buy you a bell and make you wear it around your neck, I swear to god."

He chuckled. "There's coffee when you're ready. I've already talked to Dig and he's going to be here within the hour."

She yawned in acknowledgment and shuffled into the bathroom. As she stood under the steaming shower, she was struck by the same surreal feeling that she'd had when she'd first woken up in his bed. She was in Oliver Queen's shower and she had to admit, she'd fantasized about being here but under completely different circumstances. She was nervous being here, knowing they needed to have a talk about what happened last night but she wasn't sure she was ready for it.

She hadn't meant to lash out at him in frustration. She didn't hold any resentment towards him over the events six months ago and she hoped he didn't think that. Honestly, she was mostly ok with everything that had happened or at least she had been. Everything that she'd learned last night had thrown her for a loop but it had been Oliver's moment of truth that really spun her head.

He'd meant it. There was a part of her that had hoped that he'd meant it but she kept that thought locked up tight, letting it out only in her loneliest of moments. Now that she knew for a fact that it had been real, she was equal parts giddy and terrified. She didn't know where they stood or what would happen from this point on. Just because his declaration had been real and he did love her, it didn't mean that they would be together and everything would be smooth sailing from here, it didn't even necessarily mean that he was _in _love with her. There was way more to take into consideration here than simply their feelings.

What they did at night was important, protecting the city was important, more so than her and Oliver's respective feelings. They needed to do this the right way, one that wouldn't jeopardize what they had built together.

Jumping out of the shower, her thoughts turned toward her father and the Cassavettes. She was going to have to do some information gathering today. Not that she was confident she was going to find anything, she'd already dug through tons of information on the Cassavettes and she'd spent years looking for any sign of her father, finding none. She was convinced he'd changed his name because it was that or he was too deep underground for her to find. She'd always wondered if maybe he died and that's why he hadn't come back home. That possibility had been knocked off the table last night but now she had a better idea of where to search, bringing her closer than she'd ever come to finding him. She wanted answers and she wasn't going to stop until she got them. She was going to do whatever it took to get some honest-to-god answers.

She finished getting ready in record time, joining Oliver and the recently arrived Dig in the kitchen. "Welcome to the party," she greeted while pouring herself a cup of coffee.

"Oliver filled me in on what's going on. Sounds like you had an interesting night." His tone was light but she could see the concern in his eyes.

She shrugged and tried to appear nonchalant. "Please. Mobsters and long-lost fathers are run-of-the-mill around here, nothing we can't handle."

"Mobsters, yes. Long-lost fathers," he trailed off.

"And I'll say again, nothing we can't handle." She smiled at him and lightly touched his shoulder. "I'll be fine, Dig."

Oliver cleared his throat. "We better get going. We can discuss this in the car."

"I'll follow you guys in my car," she said as she grabbed her purse and keys. She looked up to find both men staring at her with their arms crossed. She rolled her eyes. "We are not doing this. I will follow you in my car."

"We don't have time to argue, Felicity. It's more convenient this way—"

Her phone ringing from her pocket cut him off and she fished it out, seeing that it was Lieutenant Lance. "Fine. We'll take the same car," she conceded, following them out the door as she answered the phone.

"I'm sorry if I woke you but I didn't want to wait to talk to you."

"What's going on, Lieutenant?" Oliver held the door open for her and she climbed into the car.

"There was a break-out at Iron Heights last night."

"I know. It was Shepard and William Tockman."

He chuckled under his breath before turning serious. "I should have figured you knew already and that should mean that I don't have to tell you to watch your back, right? Is our mutual friend aware of the situation?"

Her eyes slid over Oliver. "He knows and we're on it."

He was quiet for a second. "You have to play this smart, Felicity. I told you that you didn't want to be on the wrong side of these guys and with Tockman escaping too, I'm worried about you."

"I'll be fine, Lieutenant. I won't do anything to get myself in trouble, I promise." All three men managed to convey their disbelief without saying a word. She glared at the two she could see and reiterated herself to the one she couldn't.

"Something is brewing, Felicity. Tockman getting out makes me nervous and you should be, too."

"Tockman doesn't worry me."

Lieutenant Lance sighed heavily. "He should," he paused briefly. "Listen, when we first picked up Tockman, he tried to bargain his freedom with information."

"What kind of information?"

"Information about the blonde computer analyst who's assisting the Arrow," he let it sink in for a second before continuing. "Seems he took his arrest very personally, yelling your name all over the precinct. Thankfully, most people chalked it up to the ravings of a lunatic and no one cares who works with the Arrow now. I don't think this was a coincidence, I think he's involved with whatever is going on and there seems to be only one person he holds accountable for his arrest."

Damn. She had to agree with him that this didn't seem like a coincidence anymore. "Thanks for the heads up, Lieutenant." He made her promise one more time to be careful before finally hanging up.

"What did Lance want?" Oliver asked.

"He wanted to let me know about the breakout and to be careful. He seems to think William Tockman has it out for me personally." She tried to play it off like she didn't believe it but Oliver wasn't falling for it, swearing under his breath. "We don't know that for sure," she tried to reassure him. "I still think there's a small chance that this is all one giant coincidence."

"A very small chance, if there is one. Felicity, you're the reason the Clock King was caught."

"That's not true, we all did it. The guy outsmarted me, out-teched me, and shot me. If anyone should be taking things personally, it's me."

"You used his own program on him to take him down. No matter what, it's personal."

She suppressed a groan, frustrated by the entire situation. "Ok, so let's work under the assumption that the Clock King is helping the Cassavettes, that still leaves us at the starting point."

"I think I know where we can start," Oliver said and she knew what he was talking about without looking at him.

"My father, I know. We should get in touch with Roy, see if he can find anything out about Shepard and the Cassavettes through his contacts in the Glades. I'll do my best to find my father but I'm not guaranteeing anything. I've tried this before and come up short but I didn't have a location to search so I might luck out this time."

"All we need is one guy with ties to the family, and then the Arrow can have a talk with him." Oliver's tone implied a friendly talk it would not be.

They pulled up outside Queen Consolidated, the car coming to a stop. "I'm going to try to get this meeting over as quick as possible then we can head back to the lair."

"Do you need me to sit in with you?" She asked. "I want to get a jump on this stuff but I can, if you need me to."

He smiled at her and her heart fluttered in response. "I think I can handle one meeting with the investors all on my own, Felicity."

"Well, look at you. You're all grown up, Mr. CEO," she teased.

He narrowed his eyes at her but he didn't say anything. She followed him through the building as Dig left to park the car, the usual morning routine. Though, she was usually here long before either of the guys showed up.

The meeting had lasted two hours and Oliver had immediately gotten caught up in work that had piled up during the weekend so it had taken another hour before they finally escaped. Oliver and Felicity waited in the lobby for Dig to pull the car up and they were both on edge. She could feel Oliver's eyes darting around, keeping watch on their surroundings, and she was doing the same thing. She could act as nonchalant about it as she wanted but the truth was that she was scared. She had faith though, that everything would turn out ok. She had no other choice but to have faith.

"Diggle, drop me off at my place. I'm going to grab my bike and check some things out. And one of you should call Roy, let him know what's going on, have him check around the Glades, see if he can find someone connected to the family. Then, head to the lair, get started on tracking these guys down," Oliver told them as soon as they were in the car.

"I did some checking around while you were in the meeting and you remember that the Clock King was robbing banks to pay for a lung transplant for his sister, right? Well, said sister died four months ago." She'd been hoping the sister was still alive, giving them a place to start but their luck didn't seem to be changing anytime soon. "And I checked through his medical records seeing as he's terminally ill but his records actually show s no decline in his health during his incarceration, which is surprising. Don't get me wrong, he doesn't have much time but he's not much worse off than he was the last time we saw him."

"He has nothing left to lose," Oliver said what she was thinking.

"Which makes him more dangerous than the last time," Dig offered from up front.

"Just what we needed, a psychopath with nothing to lose," Felicity contributed. Her phone buzzed in her hand and she frowned at the unrecognizable number. It was a Central City area code but she didn't know the last four digits. "Hello?" She answered warily.

"Felicity Smoak. You're an easy girl to find." She recognized Owen's voice right away. She couldn't help but glower and she didn't know if it was because he was an irritating person or if it was simply the reminder of her father that made her dislike this man.

"Wish I could say the same for you, Owen—what is your last name again? I don't think I caught it before I kicked you out of my house." She felt Oliver tense up but she didn't look at him.

Owen chuckled. "It would be no fun if I told you everything."

"Then tell me one thing."

"Shepard escaped Iron Heights last night."

"Tell me something I don't know. Like, maybe, where's my father?"

"I can bring you to him, if you'll leave the city."

"As far as I see it, I don't owe him anything. He's the one that owes me. So you can tell him that if he's as concerned for my safety as he wants everyone to believe, he can meet me and give me some answers. I think he owes me that much for missing the last twenty years of my life." She didn't wait for him to answer before she hung up. She took one deep breath to calm herself and then another when the first didn't work. Warm fingers slid into hers, squeezing her hand, and her eyes slipped shut, basking for a moment while his hand lingered in hers. What had started as a comforting gesture had turned into something else, a common occurrence between them.

Suddenly, her hand was cold and she knew the moment was over. Her heart resumed beating and she opened her eyes, keenly aware of Dig's eyes watching her in the rear view mirror. She glanced at Oliver, sending him a grateful smile before looking away and clearing her throat, returning to the business at hand. "Now hopefully that will work and I can get some answers."

"Are you sure you're ready for this, Felicity?" Dig asked.

"Not at all," she answered honestly. "But there isn't another choice." She resisted looking at Oliver as she echoed his words from last night. "We need answers and unfortunately, I think he's the one who has them. I have to do this."

A little while later, Dig and her sat in comfortable silence in the lair. She was running both Frank Shepard and William Tockman through facial recognition but so far, it had come up short. As had the search for Isaac Smoak and she wished she had a picture of him. She'd saved a few of them from the massive purge of his things that her mother had done the year after he left. She'd come home from school to find her mother burning everything out in the yard and she'd dashed into the house to make sure the three pictures she kept under her pillow were still there. By the time she'd left home at eighteen, the pictures were crinkled and barely recognizable and she'd made a decision to start fresh, leave her past behind and those pictures were her past. She could call Fiona to see if they were still at the house but she wasn't quite that desperate yet.

"Felicity?" Dig's voice came from behind her and it sounded like he'd been trying to get her attention for a minute.

She turned to face him, giving him a sheepish look. "Sorry."

He gestured towards the computer with his head, arms crossed across his broad chest. "Anything?"

She shook her head. "Nothing's hit on facial recognition and I've found nothing on my father since '94 when he took off."

"Do you think this Owen guy is telling the truth? That your father really sent him?"

"I believe him, I wish I didn't but I do. Owen called me something that he used to, something I haven't heard since he left so I'm convinced."

Dig nodded, choosing to not push her for more, changing the topic instead. "So how was Oliver's last night?"

She flushed, her face heating up. "I slept, alone, Dig, that's it."

He held his hands up in defense. "I never said you did anything else. Are you staying there again tonight?"

Crap. She hadn't given two seconds of thought towards where she was staying tonight since this morning. "I don't think so."

"Well, you know that you are welcome to stay with me and Lyla anytime you need."

She smiled. "Thanks, Dig, but I don't want to put you guys in any danger, especially with how pregnant Lyla is, I couldn't live with myself if something happened to either one of you."

"I appreciate the thought but you don't have to worry about us. We can take care of ourselves." His face broke out into a grin. "Even if Lyla is seven months pregnant."

She laughed. "I don't doubt that. Thanks again, Dig, but I just want to go home, sleep in my own bed."

Dig raised an eyebrow. "Good luck convincing Oliver of that."

She rolled her eyes. "I'm sure it's going to go over fantastically."

They both heard the door shut and feet stomp down the steps. Roy came into sight, dressed in his signature red hoodie and jeans. "Oliver back yet?" They both shook their heads, neither having seen him since they'd dropped him off.

"I think I got something." He pulled a scrap of paper out of his pocket and handed it to Felicity. "One of the guys I used to run with said he's been hearing a lot about the Cassavettes making moves around the Glades, recruiting people, dealing drugs and guns. He said the guy you want to talk to is Chad Watkins, hangs out at the Cavern, it's a dive bar on the edge of the Glades."

The scrap of paper had Watkins' name and the address of the Cavern. Felicity grabbed her phone. "I'll call Oliver." She noticed a text that she'd missed from a number she assumed was Owen. It was different from the one that called her earlier but it didn't surprise her. The first number turned out to be a burner phone and she expected it would be the same with this one.

_He's agreed to meet. Tomorrow. 9 p.m. Your place._

The man couldn't even send a text himself. She snorted, disgusted.

"What?" Dig's voice pulled her back.

"My mobster father's minion sent me a text letting me know he agreed to meet tomorrow night." She cringed at the bitterness that laced her voice.

"Uh—how are you doing with all of this stuff anyways?" Roy articulated.

"I'm fine," she repeated for the millionth time that day. "I'm going to call Oliver."

* * *

Oliver's entire body was vibrating with frustration. He'd gotten no where and the last few hours had been a giant waste of his time. He'd had a sliver of hope that the Bratva would know something but they were less than forthcoming. He guessed Alexei's death at the hands of Slade had made the rest of them reluctant to help. Hopefully this Watkins was of more use to him than the Bratva had been.

He had just pulled up to the lair when Felicity had called him. It hadn't taken them long to come up with a game plan. Oliver didn't want to burst into the Cavern and make things more difficult for them so they ended up deciding on trying to lure Watkins out of the bar, if that was where he was. Roy volunteered to go in, telling Watkins he had information about Felicity . Oliver would be waiting outside, ready to ambush Watkins while Dig would stay behind with Felicity.

Now he was hiding out in the alley next to the Cavern, waiting for Roy and Watkins to come out. He was listening through the comm and he was getting anxious as Watkins grilled Roy. It didn't matter though as Watkins agreed to step outside under the pretenses that Roy didn't want to pass along any information where he could be heard by someone else. Unfortunately, Watkins wasn't coming alone, bringing two goons with him.

They came into sight and Oliver waited until they were standing directly underneath him. He dropped onto one goon, knocking him down, punching him in the head once for good measure. Roy had the other one, leaving Watkins, who had backed into a corner, his escape blocked by him and Roy. He grabbed a bolo arrow out of his quiver, shooting it at Watkins, and securing him to the light post he'd been standing next to.

He marched up to Watkins, pulling another arrow out of his quiver and aiming it at Watkins. "What do the Cassavettes want with Felicity Smoak?"

"Aw, man, I don't know. They don't tell me these things," he whined.

He let the arrow go, close enough that it grazed his face before it hit the wall behind him. "What do they want with Felicity Smoak?"

Watkins laughed. "What do you think they want? They want this city! They want you gone and what better way than to take away your little blonde sidekick!"

Oliver almost released the arrow dead center into Watkin's chest but restrained himself. "How do they know about her?"

Watkins shook his head. "All I know is the big boss sent word around that he wanted her captured, alive. Rumor is there's cold, hard cash waiting for whoever delivers. Even if there isn't cash, it's an in with the family and that doesn't come by often."

Oliver gritted his teeth. "Why Felicity?"

"I don't know, man. Figure it out, yourself."

This time the arrow plunged into his shoulder, drawing a scream from him. "Ok! Ok! The official story is that she's not a threat and would make a good bargaining chip. Unofficially, they're saying someone in the family has a personal grudge towards her but no one knows who or why. That's all I know! I swear!"

Oliver put his bow down but moved until he was standing in front of Watkins. He punched him in the face, hard, knocking him out and busting his nose. He walked away, noticing Roy's eyes had widened. "Let's go."

They got back to the lair in record time, rejoining Dig and Felicity. The latter walked up to him, arms crossed across her chest. "How did it go? I heard Roy talking to him through the comm but it cut out after that." She narrowed her eyes at him, knowing that he'd taken it out before ambushing Watkins.

"Owen was telling the truth, the Cassavettes are you looking for you. Word's spreading around the Glades that they want you captured."

"Why? I don't get it."

Oliver shrugged his shoulders. "Watkins didn't seem to know why either." He relayed what Watkins had told him about the speculation surrounding the reward for her capture and the reasons why they wanted her.

"That doesn't make any sense. I don't know what I could have done to personally piss off the Cassavettes. I looked and I didn't find anyone we've taken down that has connections to the family, at least as far as I could find."

"I think your father would know."

"I guess we'll find out tomorrow night."

He could tell this was starting to weigh heavy on her shoulders and he felt a surge of anger towards her father. Maybe the Arrow should have a private conversation with the man tomorrow, after Felicity talked to him. "Alright, I think it's time to call it a night, we're not going to make any progress. Where are you staying?" He directed the question towards Felicity.

Her face scrunched up and she fidgeted. "My place."

"Felicity." His voice was tense. He wasn't leaving her alone, that wasn't an option.

She held a finger up. "Do not Felicity me. My life is being turned upside and I want some kind of normalcy. So I'm going home, no arguments."

"Then I'm going with you."

"Oliver," she shook her head.

"Every person in this city that wants an in with the family will be looking for you," he snapped. "We can't take the risk. If you don't want me to stay with you, then let Roy or Dig. You can't be alone, Felicity, and I'm sorry but it's just the way it is."

"It's not about who stays with me, Oliver. I don't need a babysitter, my life has been in danger before this and I didn't need someone to watch over me then, what makes this so different?"

"Because they're targeting you directly! What am I supposed to do? Leave you alone, cross my fingers, hope no one comes for you?"

"You said it yourself they want to take me alive, why not let them? Get this over with already."

"Just because they want you alive doesn't mean you'll stay that way. We don't know what we would be walking into, for all we know they'd take you to Central City, don't forget that's where they're based. And then what are you going to do?"

"I've been bait before."

"We're not having this discussion. You are not going to be bait and you are not going to be alone until this is over or we come up with a better plan."

"What if there isn't another plan?"

"There will be. You still have to meet your father, he could tell us something that changes things. We should wait to make any plan until then." He stared down at her. "Unless this whole offering yourself up as bait is about something else? Maybe before we argue about this, we should finish the one from last night."

"Maybe we should take a step back here," Dig's voice startled him and he didn't think he was the only one who had forgotten that Dig and Roy were still there seeing as Felicity's eyes widened to the size of saucers when she heard Dig.

"Look, I get that everyone is feeling frustrated but we've got to keep our heads straight," Dig told them.

"I'm sorry, you're right, Dig," Felicity apologized. "I'm frustrated and I feel helpless and I hate it."

"We just want you alive and safe."

"And someone around here has to keep us in line. If something happened to you, the rest of us would be screwed," Roy offered, making Felicity smile.

"Ok, ok, I get it. But I still think we need a plan that doesn't rely on my father to tell me the truth or show up in the first place."

"On that, I can agree," Oliver piped in. "But I think that can wait until tomorrow."

Everyone's heads bobbed in agreement. Dig spoke up next. "If you really want to stay at your place, I think the three of us should do shifts with you."

"Ok," she responded. When all three men looked surprised at how easily she agreed, she continued, "Oliver's right, it's not safe for me to be alone. I don't like it but I won't fight it."

'_For now_,' Oliver added in his head. Out loud, he said, "I'll take the first shift." His and Felicity's eyes met but she didn't protest.

"I'll take the morning shift," Dig said.

"Good because mornings aren't really my style," Roy said. "What about Lieutenant Lance? He could probably put a patrol car outside your house, he'll probably do it as soon as he knows anyways."

Felicity thought about it for a second before shaking her head. "Let's wait. I want to talk to my father before we tell Lance what's going on."

"Ok, it's settled. And I don't think we should go into QC tomorrow, either," Oliver told them.

"You'll take any excuse to get out of work, won't you?" Felicity teased him.

"Never," he returned her teasing tone, happy the tension from earlier had evaporated.

"I'm going to head home. I'll see you in the morning, Felicity." Dig gave her a brief hug before leaving. Roy said his goodbyes, leaving Felicity and Oliver by themselves.

She turned to him and her eyes widened. "My car's still at your place."

He couldn't help but grin. "I guess we'll have to take my bike." He laughed when she paled. "You'll be fine, I don't wipe out, very often." He was rewarded with a glare but it only seemed to improve his mood. She always had that effect on him, even when she wasn't trying, and that told him more about his feelings than anything else.


	5. Chapter 5

The ride to her place was nerve-wracking. She'd been nervous on the bike to begin with and it hadn't helped that the only way she'd felt like she wasn't going to fall off was to wrap her arms around Oliver. She'd spent the entire ride consumed with how close their bodies were and there had been a few times when he'd sped up, making her grasp tighten around him, that she'd had a suspicion that he was doing it on purpose. She'd never been so thankful to pull into her driveway and she nearly launched off the bike, drawing a chuckle from Oliver.

She'd started to walk into the house when he stopped her. "I want to check it out first, stay behind me."

She nodded and followed closely behind him as he went into the house, checking every room and closet and nook and cranny until he was convinced everything was in order. When he was done, he plopped himself onto her couch, making himself right at home. She found it to be a little more surreal having Oliver in her home than when she had been in his. She leaned against the counter, facing him. In between bouts of terror on the bike, she realized they were going to have to have some kind of talk if she was going to get any sleep tonight. She wasn't looking forward to the conversation about to happen but they couldn't put it off any longer, proven by their bickering at the lair earlier.

She pushed off the counter and paced between the open rooms. "I think it's time we talked," she said when she finally stopped pacing. He stayed silent on the couch and waited for her to continue. "First, there's something I want to clarify," she wrung her hands together nervously as she spoke. "Last night, when I implied that you couldn't be concerned for my safety because of what happened at the mansion and with Slade, I didn't mean it. I was frustrated and I took it out on you." She walked over to the couch and sat down next to him, close enough their legs were almost touching. "I've told you this before but maybe I should tell you again." She took a deep breath and took his hands in hers. "I believe in you, Oliver, and I always will. I trust your decisions, I trust your plans, and I trust you, whole-heartedly. And in that moment, I felt like you had the same trust and belief in me and I wouldn't trade that feeling for anything. I wouldn't take a single thing back." She squeezed his hands and smiled softly, shrugging her shoulders. "Besides, you know that if I didn't agree with a plan, you would definitely hear about it right off the bat." She expected a chuckle or even the flicker of a smile but the look she was getting didn't have any trace of humor.

His blue eyes had stormed over and were burning into her, stealing all the air from her lungs. Unsure of what was happening, she tried to pull her hands back into her lap but his tightened, keeping her small hands enveloped by his rough, large ones. His eyes didn't leave hers but his thumbs began moving in slow, lazy circles, caressing her skin. She didn't think he even realized what he was doing but her voice had left her and she couldn't bring herself to point it out. "I trust you, Felicity. More than I trust anyone, if I'm honest. When I said there were no other options, it's because there was no one else I could trust to do it. When I saw you, with the same sword that killed my mom at your throat," he trailed off, eyes dropping to their hands. She pulled her right hand away, using it to turn his face back up to hers. He closed his eyes and turned into her hand before grabbing it and moving it away, eyes opening. "In that moment, I thought I was going to lose you, just like I lost her. I wanted to kill him but I didn't. Because of you." His eyes drifted towards her mouth and she subconsciously licked her lips. "I don't know what I would do without you," he admitted.

She was going to tell him she hoped he never found out but the words never left her mouth. The second her lips parted, his hands let go of hers, moving to either side of her head, gently cradling it, and he leaned towards her, her eyes slipping closed in anticipation. His lips softly grazed hers, stopping her heart, and for a brief moment time froze, with his lips against hers, hesitant. Time sped up again as her mouth opened, giving into the kiss. It was a chaste kiss, in the beginning, but it quickly picked up in intensity, his mouth rough, in a good way, against hers. Her hands splayed across his chest, one of his cradling her face and the other fisted in her hair, pulling her closer to him. His tongue massaged hers and she gave everything she had into the kiss, every feeling towards Oliver that she'd kept locked away poured into him. It was earth-shattering.

Reluctantly, they pulled apart. Her hands stayed on his chest and he took her face in his again. "Felicity, I—"

_BOOM!_

Her front door exploded open, the jamb shattering, and both Oliver and her launched themselves off the couch. A large, imposing man picked himself off the door that was now on the floor. Oliver placed his body in front of her. "Go to your bedroom and block the door," he told her, eyes never leaving the intruder. "Now, Felicity!"

She bolted across the room, her socks sliding across the hardwood. She changed paths halfway there, taking a detour to grab her jacket off the kitchen table where she'd tossed it. She pulled the taser out and turned it on, wanting to be prepared. She saw Oliver duck under a punch before sending his own into the man's gut. She scrambled towards her bedroom, throwing herself into the room and slamming the door behind her. She threw her shoulder into her dresser, trying to push it in front of the door but it didn't budge. Feeling slightly panicked, she looked for anything that she could move in front of the door. It didn't matter though as the window a couple of feet away from her shattered and another man started to climb through. She hesitated before she finally scrambled over and stuck the taser into his back, his body convulsing for a moment before falling still, half-in and half-out the window. Her bedroom door flew open and she screamed. She nearly tased Oliver before she realized it was him. His right cheek was swollen slightly and she knew he'd taken at least one good hit. He frowned at her. "I told you to block the door."

"I tried but my furniture isn't exactly lightweight. Besides, it didn't matter." She gestured behind her to the man hanging out in her window. Oliver's eyes widened as he caught sight of him. "I tased him. Can you make sure he's not dead?" Oliver nodded and made his way over to the window. "I've never used that thing before," she told him while he checked the guy's pulse.

"He's out cold but he's alive. Same thing for the one in your living room. Are you ok?" He strode back over to her, taking her elbow in his hand, while he looked her up and down, checking for visible injuries.

"I'm fine, no one even touched me." Though, she wanted to kick herself. She'd been grasping at straws thinking she could stay at her place. "I guess this is the part where I tell you how you were right and it was a dumb idea to stay here."

"Hey," he said softly. "Nobody got hurt, that's what matters." He looked over his shoulder towards the guy in the window. "Do you have anything we could use to tie them up? Preferably before they wake up." She nodded and went to grab it.

Thankfully, they worked quick, blindfolding and tying both men up before either woke up. They leaned them up against the couch, sitting in the shattered remains of her coffee table. They wouldn't have been so rushed if it had been the Arrow in her living room, not Oliver Queen. She stood next to him in the kitchen, facing the men who had broken into her place. "Now what?" She whispered.

Oliver's brow furrowed. "I suppose we should call Lance."

"And how are we going to explain you?"

He raised an eyebrow. "I feel like I should take offense to that."

She rolled her eyes. "I mean how are we going to explain the fact that Oliver Queen is in my house at two in the morning? Or when that big guy tells him that it was you that knocked him out?"

"I'll tell him I got lucky." A gleam came into his eyes. "Or we could tase him for good measure."

She narrowed her eyes."That still doesn't explain why you're here."

"I was concerned about your safety."

"Didn't you just jump to conclusions about there being a man in my house in the middle of the night? Don't you think Lance is going to think the same thing?"

"Would it really be that big of a deal if that's what he thought?"

This was not how she was expecting this conversation to go. "I don't care if people assume anything about us but you've been lucky that Lance hasn't put two and two together about you being the Arrow, I don't think we should risk it."

He turned around, placing his back to the living room, and crossed his arms across his chest. "What's this really about? Why don't you want to call Lance?"

"Because then the cops will be here and it'll be one more person worried about me. One more person trying to assign me a babysitter." She sighed, shaking her head. "After this meeting with my father, I'll tell the Lieutenant myself, but I don't want to give that man any excuse to not show."

"You think he wouldn't come if the cops were watching the place?"

She snorted. "No, I don't. He's involved with the Cassavettes, maybe indirectly or maybe he's up to his eyeballs in this stuff, we don't know. What I do know is that he doesn't sound like someone who wants cops involved."

"I get that but we have to do something with these guys."

She thought for a minute. "Maybe I could get Lance to give me a day, I'll explain most of what's going on, have him book these guys but keep other cops out of it until tomorrow."

"Do you think he'll go for it?"

She shrugged. "I hope so because I have no other ideas." She grabbed her phone and dialed his number.

"Lance," he answered half-asleep.

"It's Felicity, I need you to come to my place. Alone."

"What's going on? Did something happen? Are you ok?" He sounded more alert now.

"I'll explain everything when you get here. It's kind of complicated."

He grumbled something about of course it was but he agreed to come over. She told him the address and hung up. "He's on his way. What are you going to do?"

"I'm staying here." He looked like he was waiting for an argument but when it didn't come, he continued. "Even if I was ok with leaving you here or hiding outside, that guy saw my face and I'm not taking the chance that he knows who I am. So I'm staying."

She couldn't argue with that and she was too tired to try anyways. "Then I guess we wait."

They spent the next half an hour quietly watching the two men on the floor, who had regained consciousness within minutes of each other. They had strained at their bindings when they'd first come to but had fallen relatively still since then. Though, they'd become quite obnoxious and she was worried about her neighbors calling the cops, that was why there was now duct tape over their mouths. Neither Oliver or her had spoken since, knowing that their uninvited guests were listening in. Which she found extremely frustrating seeing as she was having an internal freak-out and would like a chance to talk about it.

She started that conversation hoping to clear the air and gain some understanding about their feelings and now...she felt more confused than ever. _He kissed her_. And she'd kissed him back. They'd crossed a completely different line than they ever had before and she didn't know what to do. She'd known for a long time that she'd had strong feelings for him and the confession that she'd thought was fake had made her reassess how she truly felt. She knew she was in love with him but she also knew that if it came down to it, she could bury those feelings, deep. That certainty had dwindled after that kiss and she was starting to worry her feelings were taking permanent roots. Her life had been rocked by a single kiss, an amazing kiss, a kiss she would replay in her head over and over and over again, and she didn't know whether to be ecstatic or scared or both.

"Jesus, what the hell happened here?" Lance's voice pulled her from her thoughts as he stepped through the open space where her front door used to be. His eyes narrowed slightly when he saw Oliver. "I wasn't expecting to see you here." He noticed the two men tied up on the floor. "Someone needs to explain what the hell is going on here."

Felicity gestured towards the kitchen table. "You should probably sit down. This might take a while." He shook his head in what she took as exasperation but he obliged.

She sat across from him. "Those guys broke in, trying to kidnap me for the Cassavettes."

He tensed. "Why did the Cassavettes send someone to kidnap you?"

"I don't know if they sent them directly but they're responsible for them being here. They want me captured, alive. And before you ask, I don't know why. There's two stories circling around, one is that they want me to get to the Arrow and the other is that I've made some personal enemies within the family."

"Have you? Made any enemies out of the family?"

"Not that I know of and I couldn't find anything that tied me to any of them. There's something else, too. I found out about this through someone my father sent to warn me."

Quentin's eyebrows crinkled in confusion. "Does your dad work for them?"

"I don't know. He left when I was six and I haven't seen him since. He's coming here tomorrow and that's why I need a favor."

He sighed. "What do you need?"

"I need you to take these guys in but I don't want to be tied to it yet. I'm worried he won't show if the cops have been here."

He looked at the guys on the floor. "I can do that but you'll have to come down and give a statement. You can do it after you meet with your father."

She thought for a second before nodding. "That works. Let me know their names later so I can do some checking around." She reached across the table and squeezed his hand. "Thank you, Lieutenant. I really appreciate this."

He waved her off. "Just don't make a habit out of it." He pointed towards the men. "We're going to have to untie them so I can cuff them. I can't take them in like that." His eyes flicked over to Oliver, who'd tried to fade into the back, leaning against the wall. He looked back to Felicity. "Is our friend aware of what's happening?"

She resisted the urge to look at Oliver. "He knows."

Quentin nodded, turning in his chair to face Oliver. "And how are you involved in all of this?"

Oliver pushed off the wall. "Felicity let me know some of what was going on and I was concerned about my friend."

"So you offered your protection?"

Oliver smirked slightly. "Not exactly. I just thought she would feel better if someone stayed with her."

"So are you responsible for those two in there?"

"He knocked out one guy but I got the other one with my taser," Felicity said proudly.

Lance shook his head but she caught the hint of a smile. "Alright, let's get these guys in some cuffs and get them out of here."

After the men were secured in the back of his car, Lieutenant Lance lingered for a moment. "Can I talk to Felicity alone for a minute, Oliver?"

Oliver hesitated briefly before nodding. "I'll be outside."

Lance waited until he was gone before speaking. "Felicity, I don't know what you've gotten yourself into here but it's some deep shit. I did this for you because you're a smart girl and I respect you but I don't think you should be in this house, even if it means not meeting your father."

She knew where he was coming from and she knew he was right but she was really tired of people telling her what to do. "My father is the key to all of this."

"Then meet him somewhere else. This place isn't safe."

"Look, I have no way to contact him and I can't risk this meet not happening."

He gave her a disbelieving look. "I think that the gaping hole in place of your front door might give him second thoughts anyways."

"I'll figure it out, Lieutenant." She was tired of arguing, the day finally getting to her, leaving her exhausted. "Thanks again for everything."

She could tell that he wanted to say more about the subject but something on her face changed his mind. "Just be careful, Felicity." He looked out into the night. "There are people in this city who care about you, remember that before you do anything stupid."

She nodded, words escaping her, and he left after a final concerned look. She looked around her destroyed living room, Lieutenant Lance's parting words weighing heavily on her. This had always been her safe place, where she went to regain her sanity when life was getting too crazy, and now it was ruined. A sob climbed up her throat but she swallowed it, refusing to let this get to her. Hers arms tightened around her mid-section and she sank down onto the couch, the combination of everything plus her exhaustion was leaving her feeling depressed. A feeling that she did not have time for. Her head fell into her hands and she took a deep breath, trying to calm her thoughts.

Oliver placed his hand on her shoulder. "Are you ok?"

"No," she admitted, horrified to find a tear had managed to escape her eye, running down her face. She wiped it away angrily and moved over, making room for Oliver. "I can't get my footing. Every time I start to come to terms with the newest thing screwing up my life, something like this happens." She took a shaky breath and Oliver's arm wrapped around her, pulling her closer to him. She gave in and leaned against him, inhaling his scent deeply, and it had an immediate calming effect on her. "I don't know what to do, Oliver."

He cupped her chin was his hand that wasn't around her and turned her face up to him. "We'll figure it out. We always do."

She smiled faintly. "Shouldn't I be telling you that?"

He smiled back at her, still able to make her heart flutter. "You're always there to talk sense into me, make me feel better, put me on the right path. You are always there for me, Felicity, always there to tell me that you believe in me, that I'm not alone. It's time I got to return the favor." Her heart swelled and for a moment, she forgot all about mobsters, fathers, and break-ins. "There are things we have to talk about but this isn't the time. When this is over, though, we're going to sit and have a real discussion about—this." She knew he was talking about them and she agreed whole-heartedly but it made her anxious to think about it. He placed a light kiss on her forehead. "Now go get some sleep. I'll keep watch and try to fix that door."

She got off the couch, stretching and yawning, happy there had been no mention of her staying somewhere else. "Go for it. I really don't want to have to explain that to Mr. Shultz. Nosy old man," she grumbled. She spared Oliver one last look. "Good night, Oliver. And thank you, for everything."

He was relieved when he heard light snores coming from her bedroom, signifying she'd finally crashed. She'd been dead on her feet and needed sleep but he knew from personal experience that just because you needed sleep didn't mean it would come. There was a very vocal voice in his head telling him to join her, lay down with her and get some sleep but he didn't.

* * *

He was more than happy to fix the door, giving his mind something to focus on other than the woman sound asleep in the other room. He was still surprised that he'd kissed her but he didn't regret it. He hadn't planned on it and he didn't even realized what was happening until his lips were against hers but listening to her tell him, again, how she believed in him and trusted him had made him feel like his heart was going to burst out of his chest. This wasn't the right time and that voice in his reared up again, telling him there was no such thing as the right time, things would always be happening. That was the life they had both chosen and there was no room for a relationship, they both knew it. But he was finding that he cared less and less about all the reasons they shouldn't be together, finding it harder to ignore his feelings. He thrived on being in control of himself but it was quickly slipping away as far as she was concerned. He'd bottled all these feelings up, not even letting them out to examine for himself, and he'd been doing it since the day he met her. In that moment at the mansion, he'd let them out, surprising himself, but since then he'd been unable to put them away again, they were always there in the back of his mind. In the immediate aftermath of the attack on the city, he'd been able to keep them quiet but ever since his conversation with Laurel, they had become deafening.

He was in love with Felicity Smoak and he was tired of pretending he wasn't. He would wait until she was ready to hear it but even then there was no guarantee. They could lay it all out on the table, they could feel the same way, but as far as their future went, he didn't know where that would leave them. He didn't want to lose her and he would do anything to keep her in his life. Anything. If that meant he had to shove his feelings aside and be simply her friend, that's exactly what he would do. Before he could worry about that, though, he had to keep her alive. God help anyone that stood in his way.

He'd finished putting the door up when Dig showed up for his turn keeping an eye on Felicity. It was a make-shift door but it would do until she got a new door. He still hadn't made it around to picking up the remains of the living room and Dig's eyes widened when he saw it. "What happened last night?"

"Two guys broke in here and I think it's safe to say they were here for Felicity."

Dig shook his head. "She shouldn't have stayed here last night."

"Can you really blame her for wanting to? Besides, she tased one of those guys." Oliver knew his own proud expression mirrored Dig's.

"I just want to find whoever is responsible for this. I hate that she's being targeted like this."

"And I get the feeling this is just getting started. This break-in isn't going to be the only time these guys are going to come after her. I hope her father comes through tonight." If he didn't show, they didn't have any other plan. At least a plan that he was comfortable with.

"We need a break in this, soon."

Oliver nodded and they stood there quiet for a second, deep in their own thoughts.

"Can I ask you something, man?" Dig glanced towards Felicity's bedroom and Oliver had an idea of where Dig was going with this.

"What?"

Dig looked towards the bedroom again and lowered his voice. "What's going on with you two?

"I don't know. It's complicated." Dig gave him a look that clearly told him that answer wasn't going to do. "I care about her, Dig, but I don't want to screw this up."

"I don't want that to happen either. Don't get me wrong, I think you guys would be good for each other but I want to make sure you're serious about this before you do something you can't take back."

Oliver flashed back to the kiss they shared and hoped Dig couldn't read the guilt on his face. "I'm trying to be as smart about this as I possibly can. I know I don't have the best track record with women but I do know that I don't want to hurt Felicity and I don't want to lose her."

"Just remember that. I want both of you to be happy and even though you're not the same playboy that you use to be but that doesn't mean you won't break her heart. And if that happens you won't lose just her," Dig stared him down, making sure his point came across. "I don't speak for Roy but I think he'd feel the same."

"The last thing I want to do is break her heart and if it means forgetting about these feelings and moving on with my life, I will. I don't know what I'm going to do yet but now isn't the time. We've got to take care of this Cassavette problem first."

"Speaking of which, you should head home, get some sleep. I'll keep her safe."

Oliver nodded, considering for a moment peeking into the bedroom and checking on her before he left but he decided against it. "Call me if there are any problems." He didn't have much hope that he would sleep but maybe having a moment to himself would clear his head.


	6. Chapter 6

Felicity slept the morning away, waking up just before noon. She was pleased to find her house had been mostly put back together, minus the coffee table and some knickknacks. Dig got off the couch when she stepped out of her bedroom. "I just made a fresh pot of coffee. Do you want a cup?" He asked, already making his way over to the kitchen.

"Yes, please," she answered through a yawn. She rubbed out a small kink in her neck. "I slept too late."

"You must have needed it," he told her while handing her a cup of coffee which she graciously took as she sat down at the kitchen table.

"I guess. To be honest, I'm surprised I've gotten any sleep at all these last few nights."

Dig smirked. "I don't disagree but I will remind you that it was you who said this whole thing was nothing we couldn't handle."

"And I will stand by that. All I'm saying is I'm slightly impressed by my ability to sleep during all of this craziness." She took a big gulp of her coffee and set the cup down. "Speaking of craziness, I wanted to run by the lair and do a couple of things before the meeting tonight."

"Oliver was pretty clear about you keeping a low profile."

She suppressed a groan. "It will be low profile. We'll take the car, zip right over, I'll be ten minutes inside, we'll be back before anyone even knows we're gone."

Dig stared at her over his coffee mug. "And by anyone you mean Oliver?"

She fidgeted in her chair, taking another swig of her coffee. "Oliver does not dictate what I do or where I go." She stood up, pushing her chair in. "But yes, I do mean Oliver."

"Well, one, I don't think it's the best idea for you to leave the house and two, I don't want to get in the middle of whatever is going on with you and Oliver."

She scoffed. "I still think the lair is probably the safest place for me to be right now. As long as no one has followed me there in the last six months, it would be a perfect place for me to hide out, if that's how we're going to play this. And I think if the bad guys knew where the Arrow's secret hideout was, we'd definitely know that they knew." She pointedly ducked around the subject of her and Oliver. She wasn't sure she could keep the kiss to herself but she also wasn't sure if she wanted to discuss it with Dig.

The two people she was the closest with were Oliver and Dig and she could probably even include Roy on that list now. She cared about them all like family but sometimes you just needed a little bit of girl talk and that was something she was severely lacking in her life. It would be nice to talk her feelings out with someone who wasn't a man, especially about that kiss.

"Felicity?" Dig dragged her attention back. "Where'd you go just then?"

She flushed. "Nowhere. Now about going to the lair," she fell quiet, trying to plead her case with her eyes.

"Is there really something there that you can't do here?"

"It's easier to do there and there's a couple more things I want to check out." There really wasn't anything there she couldn't do at home but she needed to get out of this place, even if it was only a quick trip across town.

Dig sighed. "Fine but in and out, that's it. Roy will be here in a few hours and it won't go over well if we're not here."

Felicity perked up. "In and out, I swear. Thank you, Dig. Really." She finished the last dregs of her coffee and put the cup in the sink. "I'm going to take a quick shower first."

Oliver had tried to catch some sleep but other than an hour-long nightmare he didn't want to relive, he'd had no luck. With no leads and sleep evading him, he'd once again found himself in the lair alone, trying to work his frustration out through training. It was proving fruitless but it was passing the time. There was nothing he could do until nine tonight and he was never very good at being patient, sitting around waiting. He felt useless and that wasn't going to change until they had more information.

Heels clicking on the stairs distracted him and straightened up, frowning. "What are you doing here, Felicity?"

She walked past him, into sight, settling into her chair but leaving her jacket on. "I could ask you the same thing. Shouldn't you be getting some sleep instead of wearing yourself out down here?"

He looked over his shoulder at Dig, who was still standing by the stairs, hands clasped in front of him. Dig shrugged when Oliver gave him an exasperated look. "I tried, man."

"What did take? An entire hour after you woke up to talk yourself out of the house?"

She snorted. "More like twenty minutes."

Dig looked towards the ceiling and shook his head.

"Don't get all worked up. We made sure no one followed us and I'll be out of here in a couple of minutes." The computer keys clicked under her deft fingers, a comforting and familiar sound.

"That's not the point, Felicity."

"There you go, getting all worked up."

He walked over, leaning against her desk. "I'm not worked up. I'm concerned."

She stopped typing, folding her arms across her chest and leaning back in the chair, facing him. "And I'm concerned about our lack of information."

"We all are but all we can do today is wait."

She pouted. "I'm not good at waiting."

He sighed. "Me neither."

Dig cleared his throat. "Now that we've established that you're both impatient, can we grab what you need and go?"

"A few more minutes and I'll be ready."

A little while later, the three of them walked through Felicity's partially fixed door. "Only seven more hours to go," Felicity grumbled as she set her laptop up at the kitchen table.

Oliver rubbed his face, his eyes gritty from lack of sleep. "Dig, tonight during the meet, I need you and Roy outside keeping watch. I'll be inside, as the Arrow."

"Wait a second, I don't know if that's the best idea," Felicity protested.

"It's what's happening." He moved closer to her. "I don't want you to do this alone. If I can't be there for you as Oliver Queen, then I'll be there for you as the Arrow." She shifted around, not saying anything. "Let me do this for you," he whispered.

She bit her lip and tucked a stray piece of blonde hair behind her ear. She nodded her head, unsure at first, then one firm nod. "Ok."

They shared an intimate smile before Felicity turned around and sat down at the kitchen table. "In the meantime, you need to get some sleep," she told him.

"Felicity—"

"No arguments, Oliver. I gave in and now I'm here, just like you wanted. So go lay down in my room, close the very nice black out curtains that I splurged on, and sleep. You're dead on your feet, you need some rest."

He looked at Dig for some help and realized he clearly wasn't going to get any. "I agree with her. I'm here and Roy will be here in a little while. There isn't going to be a better time to get some sleep."

"You're right. I'm going to try to get some sleep, wake me up if anything happens."

"No, we're going to let you sleep if some more idiots try to kidnap me," Felicity mocked.

He smirked and shook his head. "Smart ass."

"But I'm your favorite," she added in a sing-song tone.

A real smile came over his lips. "That you are." He turned around to make his way into the bedroom, catching a knowing look from Dig. Shutting the door behind him, he took a deep breath and took in Felicity's bedroom, not paying much attention to it the night before.

The walls were cream-colored and bare and there was a king-size bed against the wall, a deep purple comforter covering it. He was surprised by the lack of pictures in the room and he realized how lonely her life must be sometimes. She didn't have any friends besides himself, Dig, and Roy as far as he knew and any family she knew was across the country. He had no clue how she spent her time outside of Queen Consolidated and working with them but he wanted to find out. He wanted to know every little detail about her, every quirk she had, every fear and every hope. He wanted to know her inside and out and he really hoped he got the chance.

He closed the curtains, plunging the room into darkness. He laid down in the bed, pulling a pillow close to his face and inhaling her scent. He was asleep in minutes.

It was five minutes to nine and Felicity was freaking out. She'd spent the last twenty minutes pacing, fidgeting, rambling, anything that kept her moving. She thought for moment that she might vomit, her stomach rolling anxiously.

"Can you sit still?" Oliver hissed from the corner by the door.

"No, I can't," she snapped. "Sorry. I'm trying not to freak but it's not exactly working." She stopped pacing but started to rub her temples. "I've been dreaming of this since I was a little girl and never once did I imagine it happening like this."

_KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK!_

The sound wasn't particularly loud but each rap at the door sounded like a gun shot to her.

"Are you ready for this?"

Her mouth was dry and her heart was racing. "I don't think I'll ever be ready." Before she could change her mind, she walked over to the door and swung it open. Her hands shook as she came face to face with the man who'd abandoned her twenty years ago.

Isaac Smoak looked almost the same as he had the last time she'd seen him. His sandy brown hair was streaked with gray, crow's-feet crinkled out from his blue eyes, his face lined from the years, and his tall frame had a few more pounds than she remembered. Other than that, this was the Isaac Smoak she remembered.

His face lit up and he grinned at her. "Hello, Felicity," he greeted, his familiar deep voice feeling like a punch to the stomach. "I don't want to rush you but I don't think this is the best place to be having this discussion. May I come in?"

She wanted to slam the door in his face but she didn't, stepping aside so he could come in. She could feel Oliver's presence at her back and it steadied her. "Take a seat at the kitchen table. We can talk there." She wanted to high-five herself when her voice came out steady.

She stiffened when she caught sight of Owen trailing in behind him. Her father had a similar reaction to seeing the Arrow standing behind her. Her father sneered. "What's he doing here?"

She stood up a little straighter, feeling defiant. "I could say the same about your back-up."

"Owen stays."

"Then so does he."

Her father's face turned red. "The mere fact that he is in your life puts you in danger!"

"He's saved my life, more than once. Can either of you say that?" She paused. "And last time I checked, you have no right to dictate who I allow in my house, let alone my life."

"I'm your father, Felicity. I'd like to think that we could have a conversation without _him_ looming over us."

She couldn't believe the nerve of him. "You may be responsible for 50% of my DNA and you may have raised me for the first six years of my life but you lost any right to call yourself my father the day you walked out that door and never looked back." She inwardly cringed, they were not off to a good start. "I wanted this meeting because I want answers. You want to keep me safe? Then you can help by telling me what you know. It's the least you could do."

He chuckled. "I'm glad to see Fiona raised a fighter."

She wasn't on the best terms with her mom but it irked her to hear her name come out of his mouth. "Let's get on with it. Your guy stays, my guy stays, and you answer my questions. Does that work for you?"

He glared at the Arrow once more before responding. "That sounds perfectly reasonable."

Felicity waited until he was sitting before she did the same. She took great pains to avoid direct contact with either her father or Owen, which was difficult due to the fact that her kitchen wasn't that big. Owen stood at her father's back and Oliver stood opposite of him, both on high alert. It appeared her father didn't trust her either.

There was an awkward pause, both unsure of where to start. "You changed your name," she blurted, unable to take the silence. She didn't pose it as a question because she knew the answer.

He folded his hands together on the table in front of him and leaned forward. "Yes."

"To what?"

It was his turn to look uncomfortable. He cleared his throat before answering. "To Isaac Smoak."

Her head tilted and she stared at him hard. "What?" The question came out clipped.

He looked away, absent-mindedly fixing his jacket. "If we do this question by question, we'll never get to the point. This is a one time offer for the full, honest story, Felicity. Is that what you want?"

Taken aback, she nodded. "Of course that's what I want. I just don't know if it's really going to be the truth."

"Why don't you listen to what I have to tell you then decide for yourself?" His eyes softened and one hand reached out to touch hers before thinking better of it, pulling it back and folding his hands back together. "You have no reason to trust me, Felicity, but believe me when I tell you that I'm only concerned for safety. This is happening because of me and I'm trying to fix it."

"I knew this all came back to you."

Regret flashed through his eyes. "And for that, I'm truly sorry. Are you willing to listen?"

"I'll listen."

He visibly relaxed, making her frown. She didn't want him making himself at home in her home, she wanted him uncomfortable and tense. "I grew up in Central City with Sophia and Martin Cassavette, along with my sister, your aunt, Meghan," he started. "My given name is James Isaac Manning."

"Wait, so you actually changed your name to Isaac Smoak? That's not your real name?" She cringed as her voice climbed higher. "So my last name isn't even real? Jesus, you've got to be kidding me."

"Your name is real, Felicity. Isaac Smoak wasn't just an identity I took on, that's who I was. You're Felicity Smoak, that's the name you were born with, the name we gave you. It's real."

She scoffed. "Easy for you to say."

"It's the truth. It's the one time in my life I was a decent person, the only time I was happy. Maybe it's not the name I was born with but if I could go back in time and be Isaac Smoak for the rest of my life, I would."

"Enough." She held her hand up. "I don't see what this has to do with anything."

"It's all part of the story. Are you going to let me finish?"

Too irritated to speak, she nodded.

"Like I was saying I grew up in Central City with the Cassavette kids. Martin and I were the same age. His sister, Sophia, was a year younger and Meghan was two. Our families were close." A faint smile came over his face. "Martin and I were two peas in a pod, always in trouble together. His sister and I dated throughout high school, a tumultuous on and off teenage romance." He shook his head, eyes glazing over as he zoned out for a second, remembering his younger years. "Martin and I attended the same college after graduation but things fell apart the next summer."

"What happened?"

"Martin became involved with Meghan and he ended up getting her pregnant. When I found out, I confronted him. He threw the first punch and we fought, I ended up breaking his nose, shattering his cheekbone, and giving him a few broken ribs."

She shuddered. How could this man be her father? The one she used to imagine brushing her hair and singing her lullabies?

"When his father, Martin Sr., who was running the family business his father had created, learned of the fight and Meghan's pregnancy, he offered me a deal."

"What kind of deal?"

He sighed. "If you stop interrupting, I'll tell you. He told me that the family would financially support Meghan and the child if I left the city."

"Why did it matter if you left the city? It wasn't his daughter who was pregnant."

"Martin Sr. had been looking for a reason to get rid of me since the moment I started dating Sophia. We were a toxic match, even in high school, and every time we fought or broke up or someone cheated, she ran to Daddy. Martin Jr. wanted me dead but his father didn't think Sophia would forgive him if he killed me so he offered an out."

"What would have happened if you said no?" He gave her another look and she shrugged her shoulders. She couldn't help herself.

"The family would have launched a personal attack on my family, including Meghan and the child. I loved my sister and I would have done anything to keep her safe. So I took the little money I had, got a new identity and moved to Las Vegas."

"Was Isaac Smoak made up or—"

"He was a real person. Same age, similar physical characteristics, no family or friends, his first name was even my middle name, and he died of a drug overdose a month before I moved to Vegas. It was the perfect identity to start over."

"That would explain why there were records for Isaac Smoak, at least until you left Vegas. I didn't find a death certificate, though."

He nodded. "The original record was destroyed by my contact. And I never did anything to destroy the identity when I left, I wanted to be able to come back if I chose to."

"So you left Central City for Las Vegas, then what happened?"

He smiled. "I met Fiona a month later. We fell madly in love and were married, with you on the way, not more than six months later."

"So you spent six years playing husband and father until what? You got bored?" Her tone was bitter.

Anger flared in his eyes. "It wasn't like that, Felicity."

"Then what was it like? Why did you bail?"

"Sophia called me one day out of the blue. Told me Martin Sr. had passed away and that her brother was extending an olive branch to me. If I came home, all would be forgiven and forgotten, by both sides."

"That's all it took? Your high school girlfriend called you up one day and you went running back?"

"It was for the best. Your mother and I were barely speaking at the time, sleeping in separate beds. And I was homesick. It was my only chance."

"You left because you were homesick? Wow," she trailed off, disgusted. "It's good to know where your priorities lie."

"I'm sorry, Felicity. If I could get those years back, I would."

"Too late for that now." She felt like a sullen child.

"You're right but I'm trying to make up for it."

"I don't think you can." She could tell that stung him but she wasn't too concerned, her mind fogged with anger. "So you left and—"

"I came home. I helped Martin run the business and I married Sophia a couple of years later. Unfortunately, in my absence, Meghan had picked up a habit. She died of an overdose a year after I got home."

Disappointment rippled through her, she'd lost an aunt she didn't know she had. "What happened to the kid?"

He glanced over his shoulder at Owen, who looked uncomfortable with the story. "I took him in. I've been taking care of Owen since he was eight."

She looked past her father, towards Owen. "Funny how you didn't mention that you were my cousin the other night."

Owen shrugged nonchalantly. "He wanted to tell you everything himself."

"So you do everything he tells you to?"

"I know where my loyalties lie, same as you."

She raised an eyebrow but didn't say anything else.

"Anyways," Her father said pointedly, getting the conversation back on track. "When I heard that you'd moved to the east coast to attend MIT, I sent Owen to keep an eye on you."

"You did what?" She hissed.

Isaac or James or whatever his real name waved her off. "Don't get all worked up," he said, echoing what she kept telling Oliver. "It was for the best. I didn't want to barge into your life but I wanted to be aware of what was happening."

"That doesn't make it ok. You keep telling me that all these choices you made were for the best but I think you're forgetting the part that it was the best choice for you, not me."

He had the nerve to look offended. "I did what I thought was best."

"I swear you say that one more time and I will lose it," she warned.

"I had Owen keep an eye on you until you moved to Starling City. I had him check on you on occasion but for the most part I left you alone."

"Until," she pushed.

"Until the earthquake. I was worried but I needed Owen with me. Things between Sophia and Martin were tense at the time and I needed someone who I knew was on my side in case things took a turn for the worse. So I sent someone else that I trusted. He came to me about eight months ago, informing me that he believed you were working closely with the Arrow."

He paused, resettling himself in the chair. "Unfortunately, Sophia knew something was going on, that I was hiding something from her, so she had her attack dog, Frank Shepard, torture him until he confessed what he was helping me with. They killed him after." She could tell he'd taken the loss hard and blamed himself. She pushed those thoughts from her head, determined not to feel sympathy towards her father.

"So your wife doesn't know about me?"

"She does now but she wasn't aware until about four months ago. Sophia is a possessive person and she can't have kids, I knew that if she knew I'd married and fathered a child with another woman, she'd go ballistic. Things between us haven't been good for a while now so this was the straw that broke the camel's back."

Understanding dawned on her. "Sophia's the one who wants me captured."

He nodded. "I'm sorry, Felicity. This is all my fault. After she'd learned of you and Fiona, she convinced her brother they needed to expand their business and Starling City was the perfect place."

"And Martin agreed?"

"Martin's been drowning in a bottle for the last decade. He thinks he's still in control and the few people left who are loyal to him think the same but it's not the truth anymore. Sophia allows him to think he's in control but she's a master manipulator. Nothing happens concerning the family until it goes through Sophia. She's the head of the family in everything but name. She sent Marcetti here to get things started and she sent Shepard along with an ulterior motive to find you."

"I walked right into him at the police station."

Her father nodded. "That's when I got word that she knew and I sent Owen as soon as I could. She convinced Martin they needed to get rid of the Arrow and that you were the perfect bargaining chip."

"What does she really want with me?"

"I think she plans to use you as leverage against me. For what, I don't know but I know she wants something."

"So you're telling me mobsters are hunting me down because your wife is pissed at you? I haven't met her but I can tell your meant for each other. You both do things for the dumbest reasons."

He gritted his teeth. "I'm trying to fix this."

"Well, you're doing a bang up job," she snapped. There was one more thing left unexplained and she wanted the answer so she could kick this man out of her house. "What does William Tockman have to do with all of this?"

His eyes briefly clouded over with confusion. "That's the man who escaped Iron Heights with Shepard?" She nodded and he continued. "From what I heard, he was cell mates with Frank Shepard. He bought his freedom with Marcetti's death and information about you. Sounds like you're quite the hacker and they wanted to level the playing field. I get the impression he has his own agenda."

"Why kill Marcetti?"

He shrugged. "He failed. He was the reason they were captured. He would have been killed even if he could have gotten out of jail."

She'd been the one to find Marcetti, she was the one responsible for his death. The thought made her stomach rolled and she pushed those dark thoughts aside.

"Will you leave the city now?"

She laughed bitterly. "No. That was never going to happen and it's definitely not happening now."

"Would you stop being stubborn? He's not going to be able to keep you safe," he spat towards Oliver. "I can't help you if you stay here."

She stood up violently, her chair clattering to the floor beneath her. "I don't want your help. You caused this, you and your psychotic wife and your homesickness and your selfishness." Her hands were trembling with rage. "You are a coward," she over-enunciated every word. "When given the choice you have proven every single time that you will run away or hide or both."

"I didn't today. I didn't have to come here."

She placed a hand over her heart. "I'm sorry that I'm not grateful that for once in my life you decided to show up." She leaned forward, her fingertips pressing into the wood of table hard enough to turn them white. "You said Sophia learned about me four months ago and that she told her brother she wanted to expand into Starling City, I'm assuming around that time, yet you're just now showing up to warn me. Even if you didn't know that she knew, you still had to have an idea something was happening when she suddenly became so interested in Starling City. You waited until the last possible second, until you knew there was no absolutely no other choice, that's when you decided to show up and play hero. Take my advice and stick to playing the villain, I'm sure you're better at it."

He stood up abruptly, fixing his jacket. "Are you done?"

"I'm done with you," she shot back.

He made a noise and wagged his finger. "I wouldn't be so sure about that. She will find you, Felicity, and I'm the only one who can keep you safe."

"A friend once told me that there were people in this city who care about me and he's right. My family will keep me safe, not you." She stood up straighter, leveling her gaze at him. "I _appreciate _you being honest with me but I'd like you to leave now."

He held his hands up in surrender. "I'll leave but this isn't finished. You'll be seeing me again, my little bumblebee."

She cringed. "Don't call me that."

"It still fits. When you were little, you were always buzzing from place to place." A nostalgic look came over his face and he smiled at her warmly. "Always buzzing with questions, just like you are now."

"Stop." She needed him to leave, she couldn't deal with him being here for another second.

"I missed you, Felicity."

Oliver stepped in front of her, blocking her mostly from view and drawing James and Owen's eyes to him. "She told you to leave, I suggest you listen," he said, his voice distorted.

Owen's hand flexed around a gun under his jacket but her father shook his head. "If anything happens to her, I will kill you personally," her father growled.

"Same goes to you," Oliver retorted.

Her father tossed his head towards the door, telling Owen it was time to leave. They walked over to the door but he paused before leaving. "Until next time, Felicity."

She didn't breathe again until he was out of sight. The sound of his car leaving was a relief but it made reality slam into her. It felt like her world was crashing down around her and her brain couldn't comprehend what was happening. She couldn't believe this man was her father, she couldn't be related to him. That man was cold, selfish, heartless, and she wouldn't be surprised if he was a murderer. He seemed pretty comfortable with the idea of it and she prayed she never became like that. Though, she was responsible for Marcetti's death, whether directly or indirectly. She had caused it.

"Marcetti's death is not your fault, Felicity," Oliver's voice was soft behind her.

She whipped towards him, tears brimming in her eyes. "He was sent here because of me, Tockman killed him to buy his freedom, which he lost in the first place thanks to me."

He took his hood and mask off, stepped towards her and placed his hands on her shoulders. "Stop. This is what we do, we catch bad guys. This is not on you. This is on Marcetti and William Tockman and every other person like that out there. You are the farthest thing from that, don't forget about that."

Her body sagged. "What if that's not true? What if I'm like him?"

Oliver smiled, his thumb brushing away a tear from her cheek. "Trust me, you're not."

"He's right, Felicity," Dig told her. She'd forgotten that he, along with Roy, had heard the entire conversation through their comms.

"There's no way you're like that guy. You're the best of us, Felicity," Roy joined in.

She gave them a watery smile. "You guys sure know how to make a girl feel better. Be careful that you don't inflate my ego too much or you're going to create a monster," she joked. "So what now?"

Now we plan," Oliver said. Those were the first good words she'd heard in what felt like hours. Planning was something they excelled at.


	7. Chapter 7

"Everything checks out," Felicity told Oliver and Dig. It was the morning after meeting with her father and the three of them were grouped around her kitchen table. She wanted to confirm as much of her father's story that she possibly could. Roy had headed home about two hours earlier to catch some sleep. "James Manning attended school with the Cassavette siblings. Attended one year of college before disappearing for the next seven years. I also found Owen's birth certificate, Meghan Manning is listed as his mother but there's no father, which doesn't surprise me."

Oliver shuffled through some papers she'd printed off for him. "I have her death certificate here but other than a bank account that was cleaned out and shut down a decade ago, there is nothing else on her."

"If we assume they kept their promise and took care of her financially, she wouldn't need a job or anything. They probably put her in a house that wasn't under her name." Felicity shook her head, feeling frustrated. "Their parents or well, my grandparents, I guess, passed away in a car accident three years after my father left. Convenient that he didn't mention that yesterday."

"Maybe it slipped his mind," Dig offered but he didn't sound like he believed it.

"Slipped his mind to tell me my only living relatives other than him and my cousin are dead? I'm sure he was just looking out for me, thought I couldn't handle it," she chuckled, drawing funny looks from Dig and Oliver. "Your aunt's dead, my psychotic wife is trying to kill you, I'm horrible person, and your last name is from some dead guy whose identity I stole. You'd think dead grandparents wouldn't be that big of a deal in comparison."

"I know that this is a lot to take in, Felicity."

"A lot? That's an understatement," she snapped. "I'm sorry," she immediately apologized. She was doing too much of that for her liking lately.

"How much sleep did you get last night after we left?" Dig asked. He'd left with Oliver about an hour after her father had, leaving Roy on babysitting duty.

"Not much," she admitted. "I know it's stupid but the one thing about yesterday that has stuck in brain is that my last name comes from some random guy that had the unfortunate luck to be dead at the time my father needed a new identity. I laid there for hours last night thinking about how I should have gone through life with a different name." Every time the words _Felicity_ _Manning_ had popped into her mind, her stomach had rolled.

"That doesn't mean anything. It's only a name," Oliver pointed out.

She resisted the urge to point out that Thea had felt the same when she discovered Malcolm was her father. She didn't think that would earn her any brownie points. "I know it's just a name but my brain keeps making a bigger deal out of it. My mom has never changed her name back to her maiden name, even after twenty years. Hell, I don't even think they're divorced. She has no idea who he really is." For the second time that week, she considered calling her but decided against it. She had no idea what she would even tell her. A part of her was worried, though, and she briefly wished she lived closer to her. At least then she could keep an eye on her and make sure she was safe.

"She'll be okay, Felicity," Oliver said, showing once again that he had an uncanny ability to tell what she was thinking. "I have someone watching her." She stared at him over her laptop, lips parting slightly in shock. "I knew you'd be worried so I contacted a friend of mine out there, someone I trust to keep her safe. She's okay."

"That's what you guys did after you left last night, isn't it?"

Dig nodded in response.

"Thank you," she told them sincerely. One upside to the craziness around her was that there was no doubt in her mind that all these men in her life had her back, and it made her feel more loved than she had in years.

"And as far as we're concerned, you're Felicity Smoak. That's who you are and that's not changing," Oliver assured her.

She sighed. "I know you're right, it's just a name. It doesn't change who I am."

"Exactly," he told her. "And we like you the way you are."

Her heart stuttered. "We're getting dangerously close to giving me an inflated ego again."

Dig chuckled. "I have hard time imagining you getting too big of an ego."

"I'll remind you of this conversation when I become an egomaniac." Her computer pinged, a new email coming in. She clicked on it and groaned as she quickly scanned through it. "We have a problem. Well, not a problem, more like an inconvenience. Actually, it could be a problem and an—"

Felicity," Oliver cut off her rambling. "What is it?"

"You remember that little fundraiser we've been planning since, I don't know, pretty much the second you got the company back?"

Oliver nodded, frowning. "Yeah, the Starling City Relief Fund—" he trailed off, understanding dawning on his face. "That's this weekend?"

Felicity made a face. "It sure is. Saturday night."

"We'll skip it. Unless we take care of this in the next couple days."

"The Starling City Relief Fund is important, Oliver. You're the face of Queen Consolidated, you have to be there."

"Then I'll stop in, make an appearance."

She sighed. "That might have worked back when Isabel was here but not now."

His nostrils flared. "Fine, then I'll go but you're not coming anywhere near it so don't even think about asking."

"I wasn't going to ask because I'm going, with or without your permission, which I'll remind you that I do not need."

"Staying here or going to the lair or even leaving the house in general is in an entirely different realm than going to a charity fundraiser. It's completely unnecessary and you know it."

She had a sudden urge to toss her pen at his head. "I've helped plan the entire thing for the past four months, I should be there." That wasn't necessarily true. She'd hired a party planner but she'd approved things, that had to count for something. She hated these things and she would have loved a reason to get out of it but that was before people starting telling her what she could and couldn't do.

"That was before mobsters were looking for you."

She gestured around the house. "Then where are they? Other than those first two guys, nobody has come looking for me here."

"That you can see."

"I'm with Oliver on this one, Felicity," Dig interrupted, earning a glare from her.

She was about to concede when an idea came over her. She jumped out of her seat. "Actually, we could use this fundraiser to help us out with our current problem."

"How so?" Dig asked.

Oliver huffed, crossing his arms against his chest. Felicity ignored him, her body humming with excitement. "You know how I had the crazy idea to use myself as bait?"

"Not this again," Oliver started.

"Let me finish." She frowned. "Well, actually, yeah, that's pretty much the whole plan. We use me and the fundraiser to draw them out."

"And what? Hope Sophia shows up instead of sending Shepard? Or that Tockman shows? Or that some two-bit criminal doesn't get a hold of you? It's not happening, Felicity. There's too many ways that could go wrong." Oliver metaphorically dug his heels in.

"It's not that crazy of an idea, Oliver. I'm sure the Lieutenant can spare some bodies to help and there's the four of us. Even if she doesn't show, I'm sure some other ambitious criminals will and we can take a few out. Or they won't and I can enjoy the fundraiser that I planned."

Silence washed over the room as the men considered their options. "That could work," Oliver said, hesitantly. "No guarantees and I want to talk to Lance first but it could be our best option."

"See," she said. "I'm full of good ideas over here."

"I wouldn't go that far yet," Oliver said but he was smiling and she knew he was seriously considering her plan.

They spent the rest of the morning and part of the afternoon digging up any detail they could find on the Cassavette siblings and the paternal side of her family. Roy joined them again around noon and Dig took off to go check on Lyla, Oliver leaving not long after that.

"I'm sorry about your dad," Roy said out of the blue, breaking the silence.

Caught off guard, she shrugged it off. "So he didn't meet my expectations, no big deal."

She wasn't fooling Roy. "I know a thing or two about shitty parents. Even though you don't want to get your hopes up, you can't help it. I know how disappointing it is when they're not the people you wanted them to be. He missed out on your life and that's on him and the day will come when he realizes what he's missed."

"Thanks, Roy." She pushed her glasses up, sighing. "To be honest, I don't think I want anything to do with him. I don't think his presence in my life will do me any good and I've done just fine without him up to this point."

The room slipped into silence again, both stuck deep in their thoughts. Her father was nothing like she expected but she didn't want to dwell on it. So her father wasn't a good man, he was the one who was going to have to deal with his life choices, not her. Well, with the exception of what was going on now.

"Felicity?" She looked up at Roy who looked slightly uncomfortable. "I just want you to know, if you ever need to talk to someone, I'd be more than happy to listen."

The kiss she shared with Oliver flashed through her mind but she shoved the thought away. She did not have time to think about that. "Thanks, Roy, I appreciate that." She was going to tell him that she would do the same for him when his phone rang.

"Dig, what's up?" His eyes drifted over to her as he listened to Dig, a funny look on his face. "Will do. But uh—I can tell you right now she's not going to like it." He paused again and she wished she could hear what Dig was saying. "Okay. Good luck." He hung up the phone and her stomach dropped.

"What? What is it, Roy?"

"Um—that was Dig. He wanted me to tell you that—uh," he trailed off.

"Spit it out, Roy."

"They're taking the QC plane to Central City to have a talk with Martin Cassavette." The words rushed out of him.

"They're doing what!?" She exploded.

* * *

A few hours later, Oliver stepped off the plane and headed into the private hangar.

"Are you sure about this, Oliver?" Dig asked when he caught up.

"Do you have a better idea? I want this over with, sooner rather than later. And I want to avoid using Felicity as bait."

"She's done it before."

He clenched his jaw and dropped his duffel on the floor. He turned around to face Dig. "This is different."

"So you keep saying."

"Are you telling me that you want to put her in danger?"

"You know that's not what I want," Dig said. "This is about something else, isn't it? There's a reason you don't want her to be bait, why?"

"Because I could have gotten her killed the last time!" His voice boomed in the empty hangar. He rubbed his jaw, trying to regain his composure. "I am not putting her in any more danger than she's already in if I don't have to."

"So this is about Slade then?"

"This isn't about Slade," he answered wearily. "This is about Felicity. She's always willing to do this, offer herself up with no regards for her own safety. And when she's not volunteering to be bait, she's sticking her nose where it doesn't belong and getting herself into trouble. I mean, even now, she's done nothing and someone wants to hurt her. For once, I'd like to put a stop to this before I have to rescue her from the arms of a mad man. Or woman."

Dig smirked. "That's something I can get on board with."

A little over an hour later, they were on the rooftop of the mansion that was the Cassavette family base. He was on the phone with Felicity, who was none too happy with him.

"I've disarmed the security system but I don't know how long you have until they notice. The satellite thermal imaging shows ten guards, six patrolling the grounds, three at separate exits and one stationed outside what appears to be a bedroom, one person inside. My money's on it being Martin," she told him, her tone cool and he knew she was pissed. "I'm sending the blueprints to your phone."

"Thanks, Felicity."

She sighed. "Just try not to get yourself killed." She hung up before he could say anything.

Dig chuckled under his breath. "How mad is she?"

"Mad enough." He hoped this worked and he didn't piss her off for nothing.

They quickly and quietly worked, taking out the Cassavette security outside before making their way inside, using the door located in the kitchen. Dig went to take out the ones patrolling while Oliver made his way towards the room where they thought Martin would be. One guard was posted outside, just like Felicity had said. He planned to sneak up on him when the guy turned his head, spotting him.

He reached for his gun and Oliver sent an arrow flying, puncturing the hand that wasn't going for the gun. The guy screamed and dropped his gun but kept charging. Oliver simply moved aside, sending the larger man into the wall. He started to get back up and Oliver slammed his bow into the side of his head, knocking him out.

"House is clear," Dig's said over the comm-link.

Oliver pushed the door open, finding an overweight, middle-aged man, sitting up in bed. His head bobbled as he tried to focus on Oliver. "What the hell are you doing here?" He slurred. He pointed at him, drink in hand, before seemingly forgetting what he was doing. Coming back to reality, he glared and shook his finger, sloshing the drink everywhere. "You shouldn't be in here. Johnson!"

"You're security won't be coming, Mr. Cassavette."

The man threw off the blankets, nearly falling out of the bed. He used the bed to hold himself up before finally steadying, tightening the silk robe he was wearing and taking a pull from the glass tumbler he was still holding. "I don't know who you are but you need to leave." He didn't slur his words this time and Oliver could see the traces of a mob boss in him now.

Oliver leveled an arrow at him. "We need to talk. You and your men need to get out of my city."

"You're the Arrow, aren't you?" He took a step backwards and seemed to be sobering up by the minute. "Look, I don't want any problems with you. None of my men are in Starling City."

"Frank Shepard is and Vincent Marcetti was, until he was killed."

His face crinkled and he seemed confused. "I never sent anyone there." His face turned beet red with anger. "Sophia." He spat her name.

Oliver lowered his bow. "I was told she convinced you to expand into Starling City as a ruse to kidnap her husband's daughter."

Martin swore under his breath. "She tried but I told her no. It makes no sense to set up there, it's an unnecessary risk." He snorted and took another drink. "And now one of my guys is dead and you're standing in my bedroom. Makes a guy wish someone was here to fully appreciate an _I__ told you so_." He chuckled to himself before turning serious again. "Though, I don't know if I believe you since I know for a fact James does not have a daughter."

"Trust me he does. She was born during the six years he wasn't in Central City."

A dark look passed over his face but he didn't look surprised. "And he hid it all these years, that son of a bitch. I should have known. I mean, it's no skin off my back if he does have a kid. I just thought I knew everything about that man."

"Will you call your men off?"

Martin waved a hand. "Of course. I told you, I don't want any problems with you. You stay in Starling, I'll stay in Central and everything will be copacetic."

"As long as your sister doesn't do anything stupid."

He glowered. "I will take care of Sophia and her lap dog."

Oliver nodded, feeling uneasy about how well this was going. "I hope so because if anything happens to Felicity, I will make it my personal mission to take you and your sister down."

Martin smiled grimly and knocked back the rest of his drink. "Of that, I have no doubt."

It was the middle of the night by the time Oliver arrived at Felicity's. Dig dropped him off before heading home. Roy was laying on the couch, watching TV, but he couldn't see Felicity. "Is she asleep?" He asked Roy, who started to reply but was interrupted by Felicity's bedroom door flying open. She put her hands on her hips and glared at Oliver, though he was too distracted by the short pajama shorts and tank top she was wearing to be concerned about her anger.

Roy scrambled off the couch. "I'm gonna leave now." Oliver thanked him while Roy dashed past.

"Well, obviously, you survived, so I'm guessing it went well." She moved closer to him but she didn't look any calmer.

"It went surprisingly well, actually."

She stormed over to him, shocking him when she smacked his shoulder. Hard. "Hey!" he started. She stood very close to him, arms folded underneath her breasts.

"What happened to we don't know what we'd be walking into, we can't just show up at a mobster's house? What happened to that? What were you thinking?"

"I was thinking about keeping you safe."

"We had a plan! There was no reason to jump on your private plane and fly to Central City!"

"I didn't like your plan," he told her through gritted teeth.

"Then you should have told me, we could have come up with something else, as a team."

"It doesn't matter now, I took care of it. It's over."

She gave him a disbelieving look. "Just like that, huh? I find that hard to believe."

"And you think I don't? Martin had no idea what Sophia was doing, he's going to take care of it. That's why I went to him instead of her."

"Even if he manages to get her back in line, which I doubt, who knows how long it'll last, not to mention that Tockman is still out there, somewhere."

"And we'll find him." He grabbed her shoulders gently and sighed. "I had to do something, Felicity. Maybe it wasn't the best plan and who knows if it'll work but it was a chance I had to take. I couldn't sit around and wait for something to happen to you. I can't lose you."

"And what if something had happened to you? Do you know what that would do to me if you got hurt or killed trying to keep me safe? You're not the only one here who doesn't want to lose someone," she whispered. "If it came down to me or you, I know who I would choose."

It was like she'd lowered every wall she had, leaving everything she was feeling all on her face, and it took his breath away. "Don't say that," he whispered as he pulled her into his arms, placing a kiss on top of her head. His chest felt like it was going to burst and he wanted to stay like this forever, with her in his arms. Once again, he found himself in dangerous territory with her. This wasn't the right time, he didn't know for sure if the danger was really over, so he needed to wait. As much as it was killing him. He squeezed her once more, wanting to commit this feeling to memory, before taking a step back.

Or at least he tried. The second he went to move, her hands gripped his arm and she looked up at him. Her small hand moved up and caressed his cheek while a million emotions passed through her blue eyes. She leaned up, pressing her lips delicately to his, and a shiver ran up his spine. They stayed like that briefly before he deepened the kiss, holding her body as close to his as he could. She moaned and melted into him. He lost himself in her, the only thing that mattered in the entire world was them at that exact moment.

Suddenly, she was gone. He opened his eyes to see that she'd stepped away from him. "What are we doing?" He didn't think she was directly talking to him so he didn't answer. He turned his back to her and rubbed his face, running one hand through his hair. "We can't keep doing this."

"I know," he answered.

"Of all the things we should be doing, making out is not one of them."

It was nothing he hadn't thought himself but it didn't stop the sting that accompanied her words.

"This is completely inappropriate."

"Why is it so inappropriate? Because our lives are in danger?" He shook his head. "That's not going to change anytime soon, so what are we supposed to do, sit here and keep waiting for the mythical right moment?"

"The right moment for what exactly, Oliver?"

He looked away but he could feel her move closer.

"The right moment for what?" She pushed.

"This isn't it," he said mostly to himself.

"Of course it isn't." Her voice was tinged with disappointment. "And it'll never be, Oliver." He heard her feet shuffle across the floor to her bedroom and panic rippled through him. He wasn't handling this well.

"I don't want to screw this up." She stopped dead in her tracks but didn't turn back to him. "This isn't my area of expertise. I'm scared that I'm going to ruin everything and my track record makes that a safe bet." He stopped, unsure of how much he should really tell her. "I would bury these feelings in a heartbeat if it meant I wouldn't lose you."

She still hadn't turned around and her voice was slightly shaky. "What are you saying, Oliver?"

"I'm saying that I'm in love with you and I don't want to hide it anymore. I can't hide it anymore." He took slow steps towards her, feeling a rush of adrenaline from his confession. "These feelings are consuming me, Felicity." He was standing behind her now, too scared to reach out and touch her. "I've buried these feelings for so long that once I acknowledged them, they overwhelmed me." He reached a hand out to touch her but pulled back at the last second. He sighed. "But say the word and we'll forget any of this happened." He knew he wouldn't be able to forget but he could pretend to.

"I don't want to forget." She was still facing away from him and he wished he could see her face. She stood there quiet for a moment but he wasn't going to say anything. He would give her all the time she needed even if every second that passed without her speaking felt like an hour. "But I don't want to screw this up." Finally, she turned to face him. "I love you, Oliver, but this is a huge risk to take. If we take this chance and it doesn't work out, what then? We have a good thing going and I don't want to lose that or you."

"Then we have to decide if it's a chance worth taking before we do something we can't come back from."

"If we haven't already." She looked up at him. "So what now?"

"I say we take a couple of days to think about this, make sure it's a chance we're willing to take before we take the next step, whatever that might be."

"I think that would be a good idea. Maybe put this off until the fundraiser is over, that gives us some time but not too much."

Oliver smiled and cradled her face. "So we're in agreement?" After she nodded, he placed a light, chaste kiss on her lips. "Now go to bed. I think it's safe to say we can return to life as normal tomorrow."

Felicity groaned. "Which means back to work we go."

He chuckled. "I thought you'd be overjoyed to go somewhere that wasn't the lair or here."

"I'm happy to get out of the house but Queen Consolidated isn't exactly first on the last of places I would rather be."

"You're starting to sound like me."

She rolled her eyes. "The sleep deprivation must be getting to me if that's true." She smiled at him one more time before heading into her bedroom.

It occurred to him after the door shut, that she'd told him that she loved him. No matter how this turned out, he would cherish that. He plopped onto the couch, settling in for the night, unable to wipe the ear to ear grin off his face. Not that he wanted to. This was the happiest he'd felt in—well, he didn't know how long it had been and that in and of itself was well worth taking a leap of faith with her.


	8. Chapter 8

The last couple days had been quiet with no mention of mobsters or long-lost fathers, no attempts on her life, and everything had mostly returned to normal. With the glaring exception of her thoughts, of course. She was still floored by the conversation she'd shared with Oliver after he'd returned from Central City.

He loved her and she loved him. There was nothing more that she wanted than to give this a try but a large part of her was hesitant. In the three years since Oliver had returned from the island, he'd been with Helena, McKenna, Laurel, Sara, and Laurel again. She didn't want to even consider everyone he'd been with before he was shipwrecked. She knew he wasn't the same man who had gotten marooned on the island. He wasn't even the same man that she had met but that didn't do much to calm her doubts. His past relationships weren't the main thing that was holding her back, at the end of the day, it didn't matter who he'd been or who she'd been with. What mattered was the two of them. The thing was, she didn't know if he was ready for a serious relationship. Hell, she didn't even know if she was ready for one herself.

She needed to talk this out with someone, get an outside opinion. That was why she was standing outside of Dig's place. She wanted to know what both him and Lyla thought about all of this but she couldn't bring herself to knock. She'd been standing outside for a little over five minutes and she'd raised her fist to knock more than a few times, each time she'd lowered her hand before she could go through with it.

Suddenly, the door opened and she yelped. A very pregnant Lyla was watching her with an amused expression. "John told me to wait until you knocked but I figured by the time you did, we'd have to leave for the fundraiser," she teased.

Felicity flushed. "I'm sorry."

Lyla shushed her. "Don't apologize. Come in and make yourself comfortable. Would you like some coffee?"

"That would be great, thanks," she said as she followed Lyla into the house. Dig was leaning against the wall, arms crossed across his broad chest and a knowing smile on his face. "I wanted to get your opinion on something." Her nerve faltered and she shuffled her feet, uncomfortably. "You know, actually, it's stupid. Never mind, I'm just going —"

"Felicity. Sit down." Dig cut her off, pointing towards the couch. She sighed and obliged while Dig took a seat on the love seat across from her. Lyla brought her a cup of coffee, which she took gratefully. She wrapped her fingers around the cup, taking a drink and savoring the warm liquid. "I take it you want to talk about Oliver."

Dig's question startled her and she came very close to nearly spilling her coffee down the front of her shirt. She carefully set the cup down. "How did you know?"

Lyla tried to cover a smile with her hand while Dig gave her a look that clearly said of course he knew. Felicity sighed. "I didn't know who else I could talk to about this."

Dig leaned forward, giving her his full attention. "We're always here if you need to talk, Felicity."

The side of her mouth quirked up in a half-smile. "Well, the thing is—some stuff has happened. And I don't know what to do." She fell quiet for a second. Lyla and Dig stayed quiet, too, waiting for her to speak again. She took a deep breath before she told them everything that had happened the past few days. From Oliver telling her his confession in the mansion was real, to when he first kissed her, and finally the conversation they'd had when Oliver had come back from Central City.

No one spoke for a second after she finished her story. Lyla cleared her throat and slowly got to her feet. "I'm going to make some more coffee. Do either of you need any?" They both shook their heads, knowing it was just an excuse to leave her and Dig alone to talk.

"So what are you going to do?" He asked.

She sighed and leaned back. "I don't know, to be honest," she admitted. "I mean, come on, me dating Oliver Queen? That sounds like a recipe for disaster."

"It sounds like you're not convinced that he really loves you."

"I'm not doubting that he loves me but I don't know if he's in love with me. What if he just wants what he can't have and then once he gets it, he realizes it's not what he really wants after all." Maybe that was what she was really scared of, that this would turn out to be the equivalent of a dream and it would be over before it really started.

"Oliver wouldn't do that to you."

"I know he wouldn't, at least not on purpose, but you can't deny that there's a good chance this could blow up in our faces."

"There's always a chance that could happen. You have to decide if it's worth it."

She nodded, knowing that in the end this was her decision to make, no one was going to make it for her.

"Do you want my honest opinion on all of this?" Dig asked. She nodded and he continued. "I know Oliver is in love with you. He's never directly told me in those words but I know he does. The two of you have been doing this careful dance for a long time. I see you both watching the other when you think no one is looking, how you both are careful to not take anything too far, and I've been waiting for the day you both realize how you feel. You guys have loved each other for a lot longer than either of you will admit. Everyone saw it but the two of you." He smiled slightly. "It's about damn time you two came around. I think the problem is that he thinks he doesn't deserve you and you think you don't deserve him. Which is one of the most ridiculous things I've ever heard. You keep him on the right track, you push him to be better, and he does the same for you but in different ways. He gave you a way to help the greater good and he does his best to keep you safe when you get too curious for your own good You two are equals, partners. We're a family and I want the best for both of you. If anyone deserves to be happy, it's the two of you."

She smiled briefly before staring down at her hands. "I'm scared," she admitted.

"I get that. Relationships are scary and taking that next step is terrifying. But could you live with yourself if you don't take this chance? Could you handle seeing Oliver with someone else, knowing it could be you?"

She already hated the hypothetical girl Oliver might end up with and she knew Dig had a point.

"I know his previous relationships worry you but that isn't the same Oliver Queen we know. The fact that he opened up and told you how he felt, that he took the chance, tells me that he's ready for this. Now you just have to decide if you're ready for this."

Her head already felt clearer. She wasn't 100% sure what she was going to do yet but she felt one step closer to making a decision. "Thank you, Dig. I really needed to hear that."

"I'm always here for you, Felicity. Besides, I've already told Oliver that if he hurts you, I'm gone."

Felicity chuckled. "Way to take the pressure off."

"I'm your surrogate big brother, it's my job to give the speech to any potential boyfriends."

She laughed, loudly this time. "Thanks, Dig. It's good to know someone's looking out for me."

Lyla chose that moment to come back to the living room and the three of them made idle small talk for a few minutes. "Not that I want to be the one to bring this up but I've got to ask, do you really think the Cassavettes are going to back off now?" Lyla asked.

Felicity shook her head. "I don't think so. Oliver says it's over but I don't know if he really believes it or if it's just wishful thinking. Not that I'm not going to argue because I don't want to go back to being on lockdown but I'm not going anywhere without the taser, that's for sure."

"Good," Dig said. "Better to be safe than sorry."

"Enough shop talk. The fundraiser starts in a couple of hours, I say we get you all dolled up and ready to go," Lyla said.

Felicity happily agreed.

* * *

Oliver was impatiently waiting for Dig and Felicity to arrive. He'd been here for fifteen minutes already and every minute that ticked past made him nervous. Between his security and Lance's men scattered throughout the ballroom and outside, he was pretty confident that tonight was going to go smoothly but that was something that was never guaranteed. He checked his watch for the millionth time, smiling and greeting people as they came through the door.

He pulled his cell phone out of his pocket, his impatience finally getting the best of him. The phone rang once before he saw Dig come through the doors. He hung up, shoving the phone back into his pocket. He took two steps towards Dig before he froze in place. Felicity had finally come into sight and his heart had stopped. She was wearing a cobalt blue dress, with a dangerously deep v that stopped just below her breasts. The material clung to her hips and thighs, accentuating his favorite curves, before it flared out at her knees, pooling at her feet. Her hair was pulled to the side, cascading over her right shoulder in soft waves. Simple diamond stud earrings and a diamond necklace with a matching blue stone that nestled between her breasts were all the accessories that she needed. She smiled and started walking over to him and he picked his jaw up off the floor, beaming at her.

He kissed her left cheek, leaning forward slightly to whisper in her ear. "You look stunning."

She flushed, smiling shyly. "Thank you," she whispered. She spotted someone across the room and groaned. "I better go talk to the party planner. Shelley's been blowing my phone up for the last hour with ridiculous emergencies." She smiled at him once more before walking away.

Dig walked up to him, Lyla on his arm. "She cleans up nice, doesn't she?" Lyla said, smiling as she watched Felicity talking with the party planner.

Oliver smiled and kissed her cheek. "She isn't the only one. You look gorgeous."

Lyla rolled her eyes. "You're too sweet. I feel like a beached whale."

"You know that's not true. Besides, it won't be too much longer. That baby will be here before you know it."

Lyla and Dig shared a loving look while Lyla rubbed her belly. "We're going to find a seat. Find us later after you're done with the meet and greets."

Oliver nodded and watched them walk away, a small pang of jealously ringing through him. He was happy for them, happy that in the midst of the craziness, they'd managed to start a family. They'd retained a bit of normalcy through everything and he hoped he could do the same one day. His eyes swept the room, searching for Felicity. He found her talking with the party planner and a waiter, and he grinned watching her talk with animated hand gestures. Her eyes met his and she smiled at him before resuming her conversation.

He turned back around to greet the next guest that approached him, surprised to find Laurel standing there. "Hey," he greeted softly. "I wasn't expecting to see you here."

She smiled. "It was kind of a last minute thing. I'm on a date, actually," she added, sheepishly.

He returned her smile. "I'm glad, I hope it goes well."

"Me too." She waved at someone over his shoulder and when he looked, he found Felicity waving back, a curious expression on her face. "So," Laurel started. "Have you given anymore thought as to what you are going to do with that girl you are so smitten with."

"I have. Actually, I'm glad I ran into you. I really wanted to thank you again. If it wasn't for you, I don't know how long it would have taken for me to acknowledge these feelings."

Laurel laughed softly. "Oh, I'm sure it would have happened much sooner than you expected, even if we hadn't talked. I just want you to be happy and it's obvious that she makes you happy." She gestured for someone to wait a second. "I better get back to my date. It was good to see you, Ollie."

"You, too, Laurel."

"Treat that girl right. Girls like that don't come around very often," she said as walked away from him.

"No, they don't," he said to himself as he stole another look at Felicity.

He made it through another twenty minutes of small talk and catching up with investors before he finally excused himself, making a beeline straight for Felicity, who'd managed to slip away from Shelley. She was talking and laughing with Dig and Lyla, and he could tell she was having a good time, happiness radiating off of her.

He walked up behind her, placing a hand on her bare shoulder. "Could I steal you away for a dance?" He asked. She smiled and nodded, taking his hand.

They took the floor as a slow song started and he pulled her close to him, swaying with the music. "Are you enjoying yourself?"

She nodded. "I am, actually. I only wanted to come because everyone was telling me what I could and couldn't do," she gave him a pointed look. "But I'm happy I came, I'm having a good time, even with Shelley having panic attacks every five minutes."

"Good," he told her.

Felicity bit her lip and he could tell she was debating something in her head. "So what were you and Laurel talking about?" She tried, and failed, to seem uninterested.

He smirked. "She's here on a date and she wanted to check-in, make sure I wasn't screwing this up."

Felicity's eyes widened a little, caught off guard, before she smiled. "Well, you can tell her that you're doing pretty damn good so far."

He pulled her a little closer, losing himself in her eyes for a moment as they danced. She was absolutely radiant tonight and he wished he never had to leave her side, knowing this song was going to end and they were going to have to go back to their respective party responsibilities. God, he loved this woman with every fiber of his being.

"What are you thinking about?" She asked.

He smiled and kissed her forehead. "You."

She flushed, smiling, and looked around, presumably to see if anyone was watching them. He followed her eyes and saw that people were indeed watching them. Some people trying not to stare and others not even bothering to hide it. His arms tightened around her slightly, drawing her eyes back to his. "People seem very interested in us," she said uneasily.

"You'll get used to it."

Her eyebrow arched up. "You plan on dancing with me often?"

He smiled and shoved down the urge to kiss her. "As often as I can. If you'll let me."

She smiled, shaking her head. "I don't know about the stares but I could get used to this."

They fell quiet again, enjoying the moment, and forgetting about the world around them. The song ended and Oliver was reluctant to let her go but he knew he didn't have much of a choice as he noticed Shelley approaching them. "I think you're about to be dragged back to work."

Felicity groaned and rolled her eyes. "What's the point of a party planner if she can't do anything by herself?"

He chuckled. "You hired her."

"Thanks for reminding me." She stepped out of his arms and they both frowned reflexively, wanting to stay that way all night. She looked at Shelley and held a finger up, telling her to wait. She turned back to Oliver. "After the fundraiser, do you want to come to my place and talk? I know we said we'd talk tomorrow but I don't want to wait that long."

"I don't want to wait either. I say we bail out in an hour."

She smirked. "I think Shelley would have a heart attack if I left before it was over."

"It's what she's being paid for. Come on, you know you want to."

She smiled. "Fine. One hour." She shook her head. "You are a bad influence, Oliver Queen."

He mocked being offended. "I am no such thing."

She laughed, a big, joyous laugh. He wanted to make her laugh like that again and again, he would never get sick of hearing it. He watched her walk back over to Shelley and through a set of doors that led back to the kitchen and a couple of conference rooms. He rocked on his heels, beyond pleased with how the night was going.

"Mr. Queen. I don't think we've had the pleasure of meeting yet." A familiar voice came from behind him and he cursed his thoughts for jinxing him. He plastered a smile on his face and turned around.

"I don't think we have. You are?" He knew already but this man had only met him as the Arrow and he wasn't about to give himself away.

"I'm James Manning. I believe that's my daughter you were just dancing with."

Oliver shook the hand James had extended toward him. "Funny. I thought Felicity told me her father's name was Isaac Smoak."

James didn't rise to the bait. "May I have a word with you in private, Mr. Queen?"

Oliver agreed, mostly to get him out of sight before Felicity came back and saw him. He caught Dig's attention, jerking his head toward the doors that Felicity had gone through, letting him know to keep an eye on her. Oliver followed James through a side door leading into an empty hallway. The second the door closed, James looked around to see if anyone was nearby. "I'm going to cut right to the chase, if you don't mind, Mr. Queen."

"I prefer it that way."

"I know you're the Arrow."

Oliver wasn't surprised and didn't ask how he knew, having been aware that it was a good possibility. Obviously, he'd discovered it when he'd been having Felicity watched, he was just surprised it had taken this long for him to come out and say it. "So why aren't you shouting it from the rooftops?"

"My daughter already hates me, I'm not looking to make things worse. If I was going to tell someone, I already would have, which I can assure you I have not."

Oliver snorted. "And I'm supposed to trust that?"

"Trust me or don't. I'm not that concerned but I will tell you that if anything happens to her because of you and I'll change my tune."

"Maybe you should be more concerned about what you're doing to her. If anything happens to her, I will come for you."

"I'd expect nothing else. I'm not the Arrow's biggest fan and I don't like the danger you bring into her life but I know that what you guys do is important to her. It's the only explanation I have for why my MIT educated daughter has changed her career course out of the blue and is now your secretary."

"Executive assistant."

James waved him off. "I'm not here to bicker about Felicity's job title, though, I am not happy about it." He narrowed his eyes. "She deserves better."

Oliver knew he wasn't talking about her day job but he wasn't going to let this man get to him. "Then why are you here?"

"Because things have changed. After your little visit to Martin the other night, Sophia's been in an uproar. Martin put her under twenty-four/seven guard, knowing she wouldn't listen to him voluntarily. And now she's gone off the deep end."

"And how's that my problem?" He asked, even though dread was filling him.

"Martin Cassavette is dead. They found his body this morning."

Oliver swore. "Sophia."

"Essentially. The security footage shows Frank Shepard taking out his personal security and then Martin."

"So where's Sophia?"

James shrugged. "She was long gone by the time we found the body."

He had to get to Felicity. "Jesus, you couldn't have called right after you found out she was gone?" Oliver didn't wait for a response, storming back into the ballroom. He did his best to bring himself under control, not wanting to bring attention to himself but he was panicking. He went straight to Dig and Lyla, both knowing right away something was happening.

"Where's Felicity?"

Dig shrugged. "I don't know. I haven't seen her or the party planner since they went back there."

"Martin Cassavette is dead and Sophia is missing. We have to find Felicity and get her out of here." The words rushed out of his mouth and he jogged over to the door he'd seen them go through. It was another hallway, the door on the right, open leading to the kitchen. "Check in there. I'll go this way," he called to Dig, who was close behind. "Felicity!" He called, his voice echoing through the hall. He yanked doors open, dismayed every time he found it empty. He heard rustling through a door as he jogged past. He stopped and flung the door open. It was a storage closet and someone was lying on the floor. "Felicity?"

His stomach dropped as he realized it was Shelley. He helped her to her feet, noticing a gash on her forehead. "Where's Felicity?" When she didn't answer, he snapped his fingers in her face. "Where is she?"

"I don't know!" Shelley was shaking like a leaf. "Someone hit me over the head. I didn't see what happened to Felicity."

Oliver pulled his phone out, hitting the speed dial for Felicity, his blood chilling when he heard a phone chime, echoing in the hallway. Keeping the phone to his ear, he rounded a corner and found her cell on the floor. He hung up and swore loudly. He jogged down the hall, flinging open the only door in this section of the hallway, finding it empty, like all the others.

He spun around and almost slammed into Dig, who had come in from the direction Oliver had been heading. "She wasn't in the kitchen?"

"She's gone, her phone's here, and someone knocked out Shelley and shoved her in a closet. Go talk to her, find out what happened, I'm calling Lance."

Dig nodded and left. Oliver dialed Lance and was grateful when he picked up after it had rung a single time. "Felicity's gone, I think Sophia has her."

"Are you sure?"

"She took her!" He snapped. He tried to calm himself with a deep breath but it didn't work. "They could still be here, we need to find her before they make it out of here."

Lieutenant Lance said something but Oliver wasn't sure what it was. "Please just find her, Lieutenant," he pleaded.

"We'll get her back, Oliver," he told him before he hung up.

Oliver held both phones in his hands and he leaned back against the door, staring at them, dismayed.

Dig rounded the corner. "Shelley says there's was a woman back here that said she wanted to talk to Felicity. When they got back here, the woman knocked her out and she woke up in a closet."

Oliver didn't say anything, staring at the phones.

"Oliver." Dig said his name forcefully, trying to snap him out of it.

"This is my fault," he whispered. "I was stupid, I shouldn't have left her alone."

"You can't watch her every second of every day. She can't live like that."

Oliver shook his head, shoving both phones in his pocket. "No. I should have known better. I should have known it wasn't going to be that easy. I wanted it to be over even when I knew it wasn't, even when I knew it was too good to be true. This is my fault."

"I agree." James had joined them now, Owen watching his back.

Oliver stalked over to him, grabbing the collar of his shirt and slamming him into the wall. "This wouldn't have happened if you would have just stayed gone. If you hadn't followed her, Sophia never would have known she existed. Or maybe if you hadn't been such a weak-willed coward, you would have stayed with her in the first place. Maybe if you'd been a man, you never would have gone back to Central City in the first place." He slammed him into the wall one more time before letting him go. James fixed his shirt and sneered at him. He gestured for Owen to put down the gun that was pointed at Oliver's head. He lowered it and Dig did the same with the gun he'd leveled at Owen's head.

"I think everyone needs to take a step back and calm down. We're not going to find her if we're too busy fighting with each other," Dig said, trying to be the voice of reason.

"He's right," Owen agreed, earning a dirty look from James.

"Where would your wife take her?" Oliver asked.

James shook his head. "I have no idea." He looked genuinely worried for the first time.

Oliver's phone rang and he scrambled to get it out of his pocket. "Lieutenant, did you find her?"

Lance sighed over the phone and Oliver's stomach dropped. "Nothing yet. My guys are still looking but I don't think they're here. I'm just the security footage."

"Was it Sophia?"

"Her and Shepard. She knocked out the party planner and Shepard grabbed Felicity. I lose them after they use a back door past the kitchen. They're gone, Oliver."

His worst fear was confirmed. She was gone, in the hands of someone who wanted to hurt her, and he had no clue where to find her. He had to get her back, he couldn't lose her. He wouldn't let that happen.


End file.
